2016 United Nations Secretary-General selection

Reform[edit]

Historically, the process of selecting a secretary-general has been so secretive that it has been compared to a papal conclave.^[11][7] Diplomats advanced their own candidacies by lobbying members of the Security Council. Straw polls were taken by secret ballot in the Security Council consultation room, and the voting results were not revealed publicly. All reported information came in the form of leaks.^[4]


There has been criticism of the opacity of the process. Writing in Singapore's Straits Times, Simon Chesterman has argued that, for an organisation as important as the United Nations, "having its leader chosen by the lowest common denominator of what the P5 finds acceptable is not good enough".^[12] NGOs such as the 1 for 7 Billion campaign and The Elders also favored a more transparent process.


The Security Council and General Assembly took steps to make the selection process more transparent and open in 2016. General Assembly President Mogens Lykketoft and Security Council President Samantha Power sent out a joint letter soliciting candidates from member countries.^[13][14] Candidates also participated in televised debates, where they answered questions about their goals.^[15]


When the Security Council met to conduct its first straw poll, it voted in private, as it had done in all selections since 1981. The President of the General Assembly was officially informed that a straw poll had been taken, but the results of the poll were not disclosed. Lykketoft realized that "the outcome of this and future informal straw polls will not be communicated" and complained that it "does not live up to the expectations of the membership and the new standard of openness and transparency".^[16] All further straw polls were also taken in private.