Former Chilean president Michelle Bachelet on Sept. 19 said via social media she has withdrawn from contention for the next UN secretary-general. The selection process, which began in November, originally included eight candidates. The UN Security Council held a third round of indicative, closed-door voting on Sept. 18; results are not officially recorded or published. Media leaks from the polls indicate Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan, current UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) secret

Former Chilean president Michelle Bachelet on Sept. 19 said via social media she has withdrawn from contention for the next UN secretary-general. The selection process, which began in November, originally included eight candidates. The UN Security Council held a third round of indicative, closed-door voting on Sept. 18; results are not officially recorded or published. Media leaks from the polls indicate Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan, current UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) secretary-general, and Guyana’s UN ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett were leading. Incumbent António Guterres of Portugal took office in Jan. 2017, was reappointed in 2021, and his term runs through Dec. 31 this year.