The race to replace U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres is now in the hands of the same diplomatic machinery that has failed to stop wars in Iran, Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan and other global hot spots. Four candidates — Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan and Senegal’s Macky Sall — spent hours being grilled by U.N. ambassadors this past week in what U.N. General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock called one of the toughest job interviews in the world.
No clear victor emerged from the auditions, and other candidates could still wait until after the initial round to jump into the contest for a post that is supposed to represent all 8 billion of us. The selection will be left to the 15-nation U.N. Security Council, especially its five veto-wielding members — the United States, Russia, China, United Kingdom and France — with the 193-member General Assembly required to give final approval. The hierarchy is plain enough: a tiny club of states gets the real say, while everyone else is asked to applaud the process.
Who Gets to Decide
Baerbock said, “This role matters.” She also said, “The secretary-general is not only the head of the U.N. and the world’s top diplomat — she or he also represents all 8 billion of us, defending the U.N. Charter and leading on peace, development, human rights.” That lofty language sits beside a selection process controlled by the Security Council’s permanent members, whose veto power remains the real gatekeeper.
All four candidates said they would focus on the U.N.’s three pillars, especially its founding role following World War II of ensuring international peace and security and preventing conflicts. They also pledged to spur reforms to the more than 80-year-old institution. But the institution’s own record, as described in the base article, includes its inability to prevent conflict in Iran, Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan and other global hot spots because of wide divisions.
The Candidates and Their Pitch
Bachelet, 74, a two-time president of Chile and former U.N. human rights chief, told the ambassadors that the U.N. must try to avoid crises and that she has the right leadership skills. She said, “I stand before you to reclaim the urgent need for dialogue,” stressing that the U.N. must anticipate, prevent and unite. She said the next secretary-general also needs to be “physically present in the field” to help tackle problems.
Grossi, 65, a former Argentine diplomat who has been director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency since 2019, said that with the world so polarized, “there are enormous, huge doubts about our institution” in solving global problems. Unless the U.N. has effective leadership and support from all countries, it won’t regain a key place at the table, he said, “so we have to concentrate on that.” He also said the next U.N. chief must visit global hot spots.
Grynspan, 65, a former Costa Rican vice president who has been secretary-general of the U.N. trade and development agency since 2021, said she knows how to stand up for principles while under pressure. As secretary-general, she said she would “continue to be the moral voice and the impartial voice that the secretary-general has to be.” She warned that the U.N. has become “a risk-conservative organization.” She said, “We need to take more risks — and I am ready to fail and try again.”
Sall, 64, who was president of Senegal for 12 years, said the U.N. needs to “regain its place at the global table.” If chosen, he said he would be “a bridge-builder” and that his first priority would be “to contribute to restoring trust, to calm tensions, reduce fragmentation and breathe renewed hope into our collective action.”
What the Process Leaves Out
By tradition, the job of secretary-general rotates by region, and this year it is Latin America’s turn. Sall, the only candidate from outside the region, said the U.N. Charter doesn’t bar any candidates. He noted that after a leader from the global north — Guterres is Portuguese — the next U.N. chief should be from the global south. Sall was also the only candidate to spark demonstrations outside U.N. headquarters, both for and against his quest to be secretary-general. Sall has been accused of corruption, which he denies.
Bachelet also faced pressure from 28 Republican U.S. lawmakers who called her a “pro-abortion zealot” and asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to veto her. She said the issue is controversial and that she respects every country’s right to decide. She called herself a strong believer in women’s rights to decide on their own lives and how many children to have. As secretary-general, she said she would do whatever is necessary to advance agreements by U.N. member nations, including on promoting gender equality.
Daniel Forti, the International Crisis Group’s head of U.N. affairs, said the four candidates “tried to walk a political tightrope.” He said, “It is not immediately obvious whether any candidate did enough to propel themselves ahead of the others, or to ward off potential challengers who might emerge later.”
Minh-Thu Pham, an adviser to former U.N. chief Kofi Annan and CEO of the Starling Institute think tank, said there is a widespread desire for a secretary-general who is willing to take risks and be more active in promoting peace. She said the U.N. isn’t part of the conversation on major crises “because it hasn’t had the courage to take risks.” Susana Malcorra, a former Argentine foreign minister and senior U.N. official who was a candidate for secretary-general in 2016, said the United Nations “more than ever” needs new leadership and energy. The global advocacy group she leads, GWL Voices, has been campaigning for the next U.N. chief to be a woman.