UN Security Council holds 4th straw poll on secretary-general candidates

A UN flag. (Photo: VCG)

The UN Security Council on Tuesday held its fourth straw poll on the candidates for the next UN secretary-general.

"The fourth round of straw polls has taken place," said Jerome Bonnafont, the UN ambassador of France, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council for the month of September.

"Each candidate will be informed of the results through the respective permanent representatives of nominating member states. The president of the (UN) General Assembly will also be informed that the straw poll has been conducted," he told reporters after the conclusion of the secret vote.

Security Council straw polls on secretary-general candidates are informal closed-door ballots used to determine the viability of the candidates. Their results are not officially released.

Seven candidates remain in the race for the next UN secretary-general following the withdrawal of former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet earlier this month.

The seven candidates are: Rebeca Grynspan, a former vice president of Costa Rica and current secretary-general of the UN Conference on Trade and Development; Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Guyana's permanent representative to the United Nations; Ivonne A-Baki, a former Ecuadoran minister and a diplomat; Maria Fernanda Espinosa, a former UN General Assembly president and former foreign minister and defense minister of Ecuador; Rafael Grossi of Argentina, current director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency; Olara Otunnu of Uganda, a former UN under-secretary-general; Macky Sall, a former president of Senegal.

Current UN Secretary-General António Guterres's term of office expires at the end of this year. The next secretary-general will assume office on January 1, 2027.