Candidates for UN Secretary General
"I
solemnly swear to exercise in all loyalty, discretion and conscience
the functions entrusted to me as Secretary-General of the United Nations,
to discharge these functions and regulate my conduct with the interests
of the United Nations only in view, and not to seek or accept instructions
in regard to the performance of my duties from any Government or other
authority external to the Organisation."
- UNSG Oath of Office
|
Official Nominees
 |
Name: | Ban Ki-moon | ||
| Country: | South Korea | |||
| Currently: | Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade | |||
| Former positions: | National Security Adviser to the President of South Korea; Foreign Policy Adviser to the President of South Korea; Chef de Cabinet for the President of the UN General Assembly | |||
| Biography: | {link} | Nomination: |
{link} | |
| Platform: | {link} | Questionnaire: |
{link} | |
| Languages: | Korean, French, English | |||
Previous |
July 24th | Sept 14th | Sept 28th | |
| 12 encourage | 14 encourage | 13 encourage | ||
| 1 discourage | 1 discourage | 1 discourage | ||
| 2 "no opinion" | 0 "no opinion" | 1 "no opinion" | ||
Straw Poll: |
14 encourages 0 discourages 1 "no opinion" |
|||
 |
Name: | Jayantha Dhanapala Withdrawn | ||
| Country: | Sri Lanka | |||
| Currently: | Senior Adviser to the President of Sri Lanka | |||
| Former positions: | Secretary-General of the Sri Lankan peace process; Director United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research; Under-Secretary General UN Department of Disarmament | |||
| Biography: | {link} | Nomination: |
{link} | |
| Platform: | {link} | Questionnaire: |
{link} | |
| Languages: | fluent in Sinhala and English, and proficient in French and Chinese. | |||
| Previous |
July 24th | Sept 14th | Sept 28th | |
| 5 encourage | 3 encourage | 3 encourage | ||
| 6 discourage | 5 discourage | 7 discourage | ||
| 4 "no opinion" | 7 "no opinion" | 5 "no opinion" | ||
 |
Name: | Ashraf Ghani Withdrawn | ||
| Country: | Afghanistan | |||
| Currently: | Chancellor of Kabul University | |||
| Former positions: | Finance Minister | |||
| Biography: | {link} | Nomination: |
{link} | |
| Platform: | {link} | Questionnaire: |
{link} | |
| Languages: | fluently speaks Dari, Persian, Pashtu and English; reads and comprehends French, Arabic, Urdu; studied Russian and Hindi | |||
| Previous |
July 24th | Sept 14th | Sept 28th | |
(prior
to nomination) |
3 encourage | |||
| 6 discourage | ||||
| 6 "no opinion" | ||||
Straw Poll: |
4 encourages 11 discourages (3 from permanent members) 0 "no opinion" |
|||
 |
Name: | Surakiart SathirathaiWithdrawn | ||
| Country: | Thailand | |||
| Currently: | {unknown} | |||
| Former positions: | Deputy Prime Minister, Finance Minister; Minister of Foreign Affairs | |||
| Biography: | {link} | Nomination: |
{link} | |
| Platform: | {link} | Questionnaire: |
{link} | |
| Languages: | fluent in Thai and English, and proficient in French | |||
| Previous |
July 24th | Sept 14th | Sept 28th | |
| 7 encourage | 9 encourage | 5 encourage | ||
| 3 discourage | 3 discourage | 7 discourage | ||
| 5 "no opinion" | 3 "no opinion" | 3 "no opinion" | ||
| Straw Poll: |
4 encourages 7 discourages (2 from permanent members) 4 "no opinion" |
|||
 |
Name: | Shashi Tharoor Withdrawn | ||
| Country: | India | |||
| Currently: | UN Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information | |||
| Former positions: | Executive Assistant to the UN Secretary-General; Special Assistant to the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations; Director of Communications and Special Projects in the Office of the UN Secretary-General | |||
| Biography: | {link} | Nomination: |
{link} | |
| Platform: | {link} | Questionnaire: |
{link} | |
| Languages: | English, French | |||
| Straw Polls: | July 24th | Sept 14th | Sept 28th | |
| 10 encourage | 10 encourage | 8 encourage | ||
| 2 discourage | 3 discourage | 3 discourage | ||
| 3 "no opinion" | 2 "no opinion" | 4 "no opinion" | ||
Straw Poll: |
10 encourages 3 discourages (1 from a permanent member) 2 "no opinion" |
|||
 |
Name: | Vaira Vīķe-FreibergaWithdrawn | ||
| Country: | Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania | |||
| Currently: | President of Latvia |
|||
| Former positions: | Director, Latvian Institute Professor Emerita, University of Montreal |
|||
| Biography: | {link} | Nomination: |
forthcoming | |
| Platform: | {link} | Questionnaire: |
{link} | |
| Languages: | fluent in Latvian, French, English, Spanish and German | |||
| Previous |
July 24th | Sept 14th | Sept 28th | |
(prior
to nomination) |
7 encourage | |||
| 6 discourage | ||||
| 2 "no opinion" | ||||
| Straw Poll: |
5 encourages 6 discourages (2 from permanent members) 2 "no opinion" |
|||
 |
Name: | Zeid Ra’ad Zeid Al-Hussein Withdrawn | ||
| Country: | Jordan | |||
| Currently: | Ambassador to the
United Nations |
|||
| Former positions: | President of the governing body of the International Criminal Court; Chair of the Panel of Experts for the UN Secretary-General’s Trust Fund to Assist States in the Settlement of Disputes through the International Court of Justice; Political Affairs Officer in UNPROFOR in the former Yugoslavia; Advisor to the Secretary-General on Sexual Exploitation and Abuse | |||
| Biography: | {link} | Nomination: |
{link} | |
| Platform: | {link} | Questionnaire: |
{link} | |
| Languages: | ||||
| Previous |
July 24th | Sept 14th | Sept 28th | |
| (prior to | 6 encourage | 3 encourage | ||
| nomination) | 4 discourage | 6 discourage | ||
| 5 "no opinion" | 6 "no opinion" | |||
| Straw Poll: |
2 encourages 8 discourages (1 from a permanent member) 5 "no opinion" |
|||
Others Suggested
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Chan Heng Chee Ambassador to the United States Singapore Biography Source |
Dervis, Kemal Administrator, UN Development Program Turkey Biography Source |
Goh
Chok Tong Former Prime Minister Singapore Biography Source |
Lodhi, Maleeha |
Mahbubani, Kishore Former UN Ambassador Singapore Biography Source |
Obaid, Thoraya Executive Director, UNFPA Saudi Arabia Biography Source |
Razali Ismail Former President of the UN General Assembly Former UN Envoy to Myanmar Malaysia Biography Source |
Siazon, Domingo Ambassador to Japan and former Foreign Minister Philippines Biography Source |
| Sadik, Nafis Former Executive Director, UNFPA Pakistan Biography Source |
Shahani, Leticia Former Senate President Former UN Assistant Secretary-General Philippines Biography Source |
Politically Remote
Anson Chan |
Anwar Ibrahim Former Deputy Prime Minister Malaysia Biography Source |
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|
Arbour, Louise UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Former Supreme Court Justice Canada Biography Source |
Bachelet Jeria, Michelle President Elect Chile Biography Source |
Barco
Isakson, Carolina Foreign Minister Colombia Biography Source |
Brahimi, Lakhdar |
| Brundtland, Gro Harlem Former Prime Minister Former WHO Director-General Norway Biography Source |
Cartwright, Silvia Former Governor General New Zealand Biography Source |
Clark, Helen Prime Minister New Zealand Biography Source |
Niranjan Deva |
Eliasson, Jan President of the UN General Assembly Sweden Biography Source |
Fréchette, Louise UN Deputy Secretary General Canada Biography Source |
Halonen, Tarja President Finland Biography Source |
Johnson-Sirleaf, Ellen President Former UN Assistant Secretary-General Liberia Biography Source |
| Khatami, Mohammad Former President Iran Biography Source |
Kwasniewski, Alexander Former President Poland Biography Source |
Manley, John Former Deputy Prime Minister Canada Biography Source |
Odio Benito, Elizabeth ICC Vice President Former Vice President Costa Rica Biography Source |
| Pillay, Navanethem ICC Judge Former UN ICTR President South Africa Biography Source |
Ogata, Sadako Former UN High Commissioner for Refugees Japan Biography Source |
|
| Ramos-Horta, José Minister for Foreign Affairs & Cooperation Timor-Leste Biography Source |
Tallawy, Mervat Executive Secretary, ESCWA Egypt Biography Source |
Tibaijuka, Anna Executive Secretary, UN-Habitat Tanzania Biography Source |
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Populist Impossibles
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Blair, Tony Prime Minister United Kingdom Biography Source |
Clinton, Bill Former President United States Biography Source |
Havel, Vaclav Former President Czech Republic Biography Source |
San Suu Kyi, Aung Imprisoned Prime Minister-Elect Burma Biography Source |
* A completed UNSGselection.org Candidate Questionnaire has not been received from Minister Ban, Deputy Prime Minister Surakiart, H.E. Prince Zeid, President Vīķe-Freiberga or Dr. Ghani. These candidates have also yet to provide publicly a platform of their agenda or vision should they be selected. Dr. Surakiart, Prince Zeid, Dr. Ghani and President Vike-Freiberga have acknowledged receiving the questionnaire.
