On 21 July, the UN Security Council held its first meeting to discuss candidates for the next UN Secretary-General. In the first round of straw polls, Council members indicated whether they “encourage,” “discourage” or have “no opinion” about each of the candidates.
Under the UN Charter, the Secretary-General is appointed by the General Assembly, “upon the recommendation” of the Security Council. A series of straw polls are used by the Council to identify which candidates enjoy the broadest support from its members—and which face an uphill battle.
Speaking to Sputnik radio, UNA-UK's Deputy Director (Outreach), Richard Nelmes, explained that UNA-UK - a co-founder of the 1 for 7 Billion campaign - has "sought to open up this process, which has been held behind closed doors" for the past 70 years. Ahead of last week's polls, 1 for 7 Billion pressed the Council for a “continued commitment to a transparent process”.
António Guterres, former UN High Commissioner for Refugees and former Prime Minister of Portugal, has been widely reported in the press as the early frontrunner. He is followed closely by Danilo Türk, the former Assistant-Secretary-General for Political Affairs. Natalia Gherman, Igor Lukšić, and Vesna Pusić are believed to have been the least successful this round.
Using multiple government and media sources, 1 for 7 Billion has compiled the results of last week's straw poll. Here’s how the candidates fared:
António Guterres (Portugal): 12 “encourage,” 0 “discourage,” 3 “no opinion”
Danilo Türk (Slovenia): 11 “encourage,” 2 “discourage,” 2 “no opinion”
Irina Bokova (Bulgaria): 9 “encourage,” 4 “discourage,” 2 “no opinion”
Vuk Jeremić (Serbia): 9 “encourage,” 5 “discourage,” 1 “no opinion”
Srgjan Kerim (FYRO Macedonia): 9 “encourage,” 5 “discourage,” 1 “no opinion”
Helen Clark (New Zealand): 8 “encourage,” 5 “discourage,” 2 “no opinion”
Miroslav Lajčák (Slovak Republic): 7 "encourage," 3 "discourage," 5 "no opinion"
Susana Malcorra (Argentina): 7 “encourage,” 4 “discourage,” 4 “no opinion”
Christiana Figueres (Costa Rica): 5 “encourage,” 5 “discourage,” 5 “no opinion”
Natalia Gherman (Moldova): 4 “encourage,” 4 “discourage,” 7 “no opinion”
Igor Lukšić (Montenegro): 3 “encourage,” 7 “discourage,” 5 “no opinion”
Vesna Pusić (Croatia): 2 “encourage,” 11 “discourage,” 2 “no opinion”
For more on the straw poll results, see articles in the Associated Press, Foreign Policy, and IB Times UK. To learn more about the qualifications of each of the candidates, visit 1 for 7 Billion's candidates page.
While no dates have been announced for future straw polls, the Council will likely hold several rounds in the coming months.
Neither UNA-UK nor 1 for 7 Billion take a position on any candidate for UN Secretary-General.
