The United Nations is an international organization consisting of 193 member states that aims to maintain international peace, ensure the protection of all people, support developing nations, and more. They do this through utilizing diplomacy and international relations with other member states to peacefully resolve the many issues and crises that face the world today. The UN is split up into many different bodies for debate, referred to as committees or councils, which handle issues on topics that they specifically focus on. This includes groups like the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), the only committee with actual power to enforce guidelines or policies on countries. This council consists of five permanent members: The United States, France, China, Russia, and the United Kingdom. The permanent five powers never leave the UNSC and have been constant members since the UN was founded in 1945. There are also 10 rotating members selected every 2 years by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The UNGA convenes for global issues or international crises, and delegates from all member states come together to debate.
The entire United Nations is led by one person: The Secretary-General. The Secretary-General is the embodiment of what the UN stands for and is a symbol of peace, protection, and international cooperation. The Secretary-General is tasked with many different roles to fulfill as leader of the UN. His major role is to oversee the UN and ensure that it is functioning properly and that its efficiency is maintained. As a representation of the UN as a whole, they also work to resolve international disputes by encouraging diplomacy and communication. The Secretary-General holds the power to bring any matter before the Security Council that they deem as a threat to international security or humanitarian law. As of now, the United Nations has only had a total of 9 Secretaries-General since their founding in 1945. These Secretaries-Generals have 5 year long terms and have never exceeded more than 2 consecutive terms out of respect for the organization and what it stands for. The current Secretary–General is Antonio Guterres of Portugal, who is serving the final month of his second term. The election process for 10th Secretary-General is about to begin.
The long and grueling evaluation process necessary to elect a new Secretary-General begins with a simple nomination. Every member state is given the opportunity to nominate their delegates, foreign leaders, or other important people who they deem fit for the position. These nominations must be submitted before the deadline of April 1st in the year of the election. After all applications have been submitted, the candidates are briefly reviewed by the UNGA to determine eligibility for the position of Secretary-General. The remaining candidates proceed to the UNSC where they undergo a long process called “Interactive Dialogues”. These involve the 15 total states of the UNSC questioning the candidates about their vision and goals for the UN in the future. This allows the states to generally understand how the candidates would lead the UN if selected, and they can then decide which candidates they would consider electing for Secretary-General. These meetings are live streamed for public viewership. This step in the election process is arguably the most important as it is the crucial step that determines whether or not a candidate will be a finalist for the position. After this process concludes, the UNSC holds “Straw Polls”, a series of elections that take place inside of the council where the permanent five members continuously vote until a consensus on one singular candidate is reached. Once this singular candidate has been decided, they are reviewed one final time by the UNGA. They must get approved by the General Assembly before being allowed to officially take office as the United Nations Secretary-General. However, this last step is more ceremonial than actual review, and the new Secretary-General is really decided after the Straw Polls. Nonetheless, it is still vital to the election process as it formally inducts a new Secretary-General. After a candidate makes it through all of these steps, they gain one of the most important jobs in the world as a symbol of peace, a symbol of diplomacy, and a symbol of the future: The Secretary-General of the United Nations.
SOURCES
“Inside the UN Race: How the Next Secretary-General Will Be Chosen | APT.” YouTube,
YouTube, 19 Jan. 2026, www.youtube.com/watch?v=
Jean-Pierre Kempeneers, Jean-Pierre, and Sam Muller. “Electing the next UN
Secretary-General: A Final Test for Multilateralism.” PassBlue, 21 Sept. 2025,
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