UNSC completes sixth straw poll for UN Secretary-General; date of next vote remains uncertain

The UN Security Council has completed its sixth 'color-coded' preliminary vote (straw poll) aimed at selecting a successor before Secretary-General António Guterres' term expires. Following the closed session attended by all 15 Council members, UNSC President Aglaia Balta, Greece's Permanent Representative to the UN, told reporters that results would be conveyed to the permanent representatives of candidate countries and that the President of the General Assembly would also be briefed, Anadolu Agency reported.

Balta noted that the date for the seventh round has not yet been determined — one of the clearest signals yet that the process has effectively stalled. Previously, rounds had been held weeks apart.

US Permanent Representative to the UN Mike Waltz said in remarks after the vote that Washington is aware of expectations around regional rotation, but that the best candidate will be chosen, and stressed that nominating new candidates is a sovereign right.

The Security Council has employed the straw poll method in Secretary-General elections since 1996. A process stretching to a sixth round had not been seen since Ban Ki-moon's election in 2006.