UN Security Council Begins Straw Polls for Next Secretary-General

The United Nations Security Council began a series of informal, closed-door straw poll ballots on Thursday, July 29, 2026, to evaluate seven candidates seeking to succeed António Guterres. The current Secretary-General is scheduled to step down at the end of the year after completing two five-year terms.

The candidate pool includes diplomats from Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guyana, Senegal, and Uganda. Among them is Ugandan diplomat Olara Otunnu, who was included in the polling despite not having completed informal hearings. Zenon Mukongo Ngay, the U.N. ambassador for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, confirmed the start date for the process.

During these polls, the 15 Security Council members mark candidates as encourage, discourage, or no opinion. Because no clear front-runner has emerged, the polling process may extend through late September or early October. The final selection requires a Security Council resolution with at least nine votes and no vetoes from the five permanent members, followed by formal approval from the United Nations General Assembly.