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Former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet has officially withdrawn her candidacy for the position of United Nations secretary-general. The 74-year-old announced her decision on Saturday via a video statement, stating that while she did not regret the challenge, the timing was not appropriate for her campaign.
Bachelet’s exit follows the release of a third informal straw poll by the UN Security Council on Friday. In that vote, she received one encourage vote, 11 discourage votes, and three no opinion votes. Her support had declined steadily from six encouraging votes in July and two in August.
The same straw poll indicated that Rebeca Grynspan of Costa Rica is currently leading the field with nine encouraging votes, followed by Guyana’s Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett with eight. Other remaining candidates include Rafael Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency, former Senegalese President Macky Sall, and Ecuadorian diplomat Maria Fernanda Espinosa.
To secure the nomination, a candidate must receive at least nine votes from the 15-member Security Council and avoid a veto from any of the five permanent members: China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The successful candidate will replace current Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, whose term concludes on December 31.
Bachelet, who was nominated by Chile in February with support from Brazil and Mexico, had aimed to become the first woman to lead the United Nations. Her withdrawal occurs as world leaders prepare to gather in New York for the General Assembly’s annual high-level session, which begins on Tuesday.
Article source: www.aljazeera.com | Image credit: www.aljazeera.com
