The candidates declared to succeed UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres were interviewed in public this week in New York, a necessary step before the designation of the one who will lead a multilateral organization in the midst of a storm. Who can obtain the consensus necessary for their election? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the four personalities still in the running?

Published on: 04/22/2026 - 10:35 p.m. Modified on: 04/22/2026 - 11:03 p.m.

Four candidates are preparing to succeed UN chief Antonio Guterres, whose mandate ends on December 31. Tuesday April 21 and Wednesday April 22, the applicants endeavored to orally convince the representatives of the Member States of their abilities.

After the job interview will come the vote of the General Assembly. But "everything will depend on their ability to obtain either the agreement of the five permanent members of the Security Council (China, United States, United Kingdom, France, Russia), or the benevolent abstention of one of them", warns Anne-Cécile Robert, journalist at Le Monde Diplomatique and lecturer at Paris 2 University, on France 24.

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According to the tradition of UN rotation, the head of the organization should come from Latin America. The region has not had this honor since 1991, with the Peruvian Javier Pérez de Cuéllar. Many States are also calling for a woman to take the helm of the UN for the first time.

Michelle Bachelet: the defense of human rights in 2026, a weak point?

Two assets for Chile? Aged 74, Michelle Bachelet, tortured for her opposition to the regime of Augusto Pinochet, was the first female president of her country, at the head of which she served two terms (2006-2010 then 2014-2018). The socialist had thus become an essential figure in the international political landscape.

His candidacy is supported by Mexico and Brazil. But his own country, Chile, recently withdrew its support after new far-right President José Antonio Kast took office.

His time at the head of the UN High Commission for Human Rights (2018-2022) attracted other resentments. “She was very offensive on human rights. And that does not please a certain number of permanent members of the Security Council,” summarizes Alexandra Novosseloff, associate researcher at the Thucydides Center at the University of Paris-Panthéon-Assas and specialist in the United Nations, on the English-speaking branch of France 24.

China had in fact strongly criticized the publication by Michelle Bachelet of a damning report on the fate of the Uighur minority.

The Chilean has also come under fire from American conservatives for her pro-abortion rights views, and this month Mike Walz, Washington's new ambassador to the UN, appeared to torpedo her candidacy by declaring that he shared concerns about her suitability for the post.

Rafael Grossi: “save humanity” with American blessing

Uncle Sam's country also seems to lean in favor of another Latin American candidate. “It’s no secret: at this stage, the United States would prefer Rafael Grossi,” says Alexandra Novosseloff.

In his application letter, the 65-year-old Argentinian pleads for a “return of the UN to its founding bases: saving humanity from the scourge of war”. A speech in line with the Trump administration.

This career diplomat entered the spotlight by taking the helm of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 2019.

The polyglot is a regular guest of the international media, starting with France 24, in a context of serious concerns around nuclear security, whether in Ukraine or Iran.

His position in fact led him to deal with the Iranian nuclear program and the dangers linked to the Zaporizhzhia power plant, occupied by Russian forces – two burning issues directly involving several permanent members of the Security Council.

“He is the one whose name circulates the most. His profile would correspond to the context since he is used to negotiating with the big people, including the most turbulent, including the big bad guys,” summarizes Anne-Cécile Robert. “In the period ahead, this ability to discuss with the major nuclear powers will be extremely useful.”

The discreet talents of Rebeca Grynspan

The Costa Rican Rebeca Grynspan certainly does not have the same experience in terms of nuclear risks, but that does not mean she should be ashamed of her CV. The former vice-president of Costa Rica heads the UN agency for trade and development (UNCTAD). As such, it negotiated in 2022, with Moscow and kyiv, the “Black Sea Initiative” to facilitate the export of Ukrainian grains after the large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The candidate was born to Jewish parents who narrowly survived the Holocaust before immigrating to Central America. “I don’t expect preferential treatment. I want equal treatment,” she recently told AFP.

If Rebeca Grynspan remains little known to the general public, she benefits from other assets, believes Anne-Cécile Robert: numerous contacts as well as "know-how to promote herself in diplomatic circles".

Macky Sall, the African whom Africa does not want

Macky Sall, 64, is the only candidate not from Latin America. His candidacy for the UN, supported by Burundi – at the head of the rotating presidency of the African Union – is supported neither by the regional bloc, of which 20 of the 55 member countries opposed it, nor by his own country. “His chances of reaching the final stage are therefore very low,” says Alexandra Novosseloff.

The current Senegalese authorities accuse him of having bloodily repressed the violent political demonstrations which left dozens of dead between 2021 and 2024. "He was once taken seriously. Then this sequence really worked to his disadvantage", deciphers Anne-Cécile Robert.

At the heart of the reproaches addressed to the "leaver", precisely, is the UN's impotence in the face of human rights violations. Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan: the Guterres decade was marked by an increase in humanitarian disasters and an unprecedented questioning of international law. President Trump would also like to replace the UN with a body under his control, the Peace Council.

The name of the future head of the UN will not be known until the end of the year, but the question posed to the candidates during their grand oral presentation was in no doubt: what can the United Nations do for the 21st century?

With Reuters and AFP

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