UN Secretary-General Race Enters Critical Stage Rebeca Grynspan Becomes the Only Candidate to Reach

UN Secretary-General Race Enters Critical Stage
Rebeca Grynspan Becomes the Only Candidate to Reach Nine-Vote Mark

Times Square Global Live | New York

The race to select the next United Nations Secretary-General entered a critical stage on October 7, when the UN Security Council held its fifth informal straw poll.

Rebeca Grynspan, a former Vice President of Costa Rica and the current Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, received nine “encourage” votes and six “discourage” votes. She remains the frontrunner and was the only candidate in this round to reach the nine-vote mark required for a Security Council recommendation.

However, the straw poll was informal and nonbinding. Its outcome does not mean that Grynspan has secured the Security Council’s formal endorsement.

To be formally recommended, a candidate must receive at least nine affirmative votes from the 15-member Security Council and face no veto from any of its five permanent members: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States. A permanent member may abstain without blocking the recommendation, but a negative vote from any one of the five would prevent the candidate from advancing.

The central question is therefore whether any of Grynspan’s six “discourage” votes came from a permanent member of the Security Council. Because the latest ballots did not distinguish between permanent and elected members, that remains unknown.

Rafael Grossi of Argentina, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, placed second with six “encourage” votes, seven “discourage” votes and two “no opinion” votes.

Guyana’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, received five “encourage” votes, nine “discourage” votes and one “no opinion” vote, marking a significant decline from her performance in earlier rounds.

Former Senegalese President Macky Sall received five “encourage” votes. Former UN General Assembly President María Fernanda Espinosa of Ecuador and former senior UN official Olara Otunnu of Uganda each received three. Ivonne A-Baki, an Ecuadorian former ambassador nominated by Tonga, received no “encourage” votes.

Grynspan’s support declined slightly from the fourth straw poll on September 29, when she received 10 “encourage” votes. The latest result confirms her position as the leading candidate, but also shows that the Security Council has yet to consolidate around a consensus choice.

According to diplomatic reporting, the next straw poll is expected to take place on October 16 and may use color-coded ballots distinguishing votes cast by the five permanent members from those cast by the 10 elected members. Although individual countries’ votes would remain confidential, the system could reveal whether any candidate faces a potential permanent-member veto.

No woman has served as UN Secretary-General since the organization was founded in 1945. If Grynspan ultimately secures the Security Council’s recommendation and appointment by the UN General Assembly, she would become the first woman to lead the United Nations.

Secretary-General António Guterres will complete his second five-year term on December 31, 2026. His successor is expected to take office on January 1, 2027.

For now, Grynspan is the clearest frontrunner—but her path to the UN’s highest office will depend not only on maintaining at least nine votes, but also on avoiding opposition from all five permanent members of the Security Council.

Sources: United Nations, Reuters and PassBlue
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