2 Women Leaders in Contention to become Next UN Secretary-General

• Interactive discussions will commence this month in advance of voting for the three candidates.
• Two of the participating candidates are women, highlighting growing gender representation
•  Rising global movement to have the first woman serve as UN Secretary-General.

In April, voting begins as three potential candidates, two of whom are women, will participate in a series of interactive discussions. Although the four candidates for the next Secretary General are a mix of genders, there has been an increase in demand for a female candidate to hold this position for the first time in UN history.

The first such opportunity for female leadership will occur in April when all four nominees convene for a Q&A and to engage with stakeholders from around the world as they consider who will fill this role after UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres - former Prime Minister of Portugal, former High Commissioner for Refugees - completes his second term and departs as Secretary General in December 2026. The organization has had only 9 Secretary Generals throughout its 80 years of existence.

The candidates competing for the UN Secretary-General post include Michelle Bachelet (former Chilean president and former UN high commissioner of human rights), Rebeca Grynspan (secretary-general of UN Conference on Trade and Development/united nations conference on trade and development), Rafael Grossi , and Macky Sall.

Bachelet has been nominated by Brazil and Mexico; Grynspan by Costa Rica; Grossi by Argentina; and Sall by Burundi.

According to the office of UNGA President Annalena Baerbock, the interactive dialogue sessions with candidates will include three hours for each candidate and will be held on April 21 and 22.

The Secretary-General is appointed by the 193-member General Assembly "at the recommendation of the Security Council [United Nations Security Council], the US, the UK, France, China and Russia [permanent members of the United Nations Security Council who possess veto power]."

A UN General Assembly resolution passed in September last year "noted the lack of a female Secretary General of the United Nations" and "encouraged Member States to strongly consider nominating females to this position".

Multiple organizations advocating for rights have called for a woman to be elected as the new secretary-general of the UN. They have called upon Member States to exclusively support women candidates and to implement a very transparent, open and fair process.

"We believe that appointing a woman leader with a proven commitment to gender equality, human rights, and multilateralism is not just a symbolic step—it is a necessary one for the UN's legitimacy, effectiveness, and future,” Woman SG, a campaign to elect a female UN Secretary General, said.

1 for 8 billion, a worldwide campaign for an inclusive process by which to select the first female Secretary-General of the UN, said that the process of selecting the new UN leader must lead to someone who will be able to tackle this challenge.

"That means giving all governments and people a chance to shape the process; not only the most powerful...And it means making history by appointing a woman to lead the 80-year-old institution."

"The UN’s normative power is waning, and historical injustice can no longer be tolerated - we need a feminist woman leader who reflects the future we want and the UN we need to get there.” they added.