United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres gives a press conference in Damascus on July 26, 2026. (Credit: Louai Beshara/AFP)
The 10th United Nations secretary-general will be chosen this year for a five-year term starting on Jan. 1, 2027.
While U.S. President Donald Trump has reportedly been considering FIFA's Gianni Infantino as the next U.N. secretary-general, here are the candidates so far running to take over from outgoing U.N. chief Antonio Guterres:
Rafael Grossi
Grossi, a 65-year-old career diplomat from Argentina, has been a high-profile director general of the U.N. nuclear watchdog for the past six years.
While the International Atomic Energy Agency has long policed Iran's nuclear program, Grossi led negotiations aimed at salvaging parts of a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and major powers after President Donald Trump's decision to pull the United States out of it in 2018. His critics argue he has gone too far in trying to cut deals with Iran.
A multilingual father of eight, Grossi has raised both his and the IAEA's profile with his shuttle diplomacy in international crises.
His clearest success was getting a small IAEA team stationed at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine.
Many diplomats see him as frontrunner after his years spent trying to keep onside the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, whose backing is crucial for the top job.
Rebeca Grynspan
Grynspan, 70, depicts herself as a reform-minded multilateralist who has battled gender barriers and has had a lifelong belief in the U.N. and its commitment to peace, development and human rights.
A former vice president of Costa Rica who heads the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development, Grynspan said she stepped back from duties until September to avoid conflicts of interest during the campaign.
If elected, Grynspan would be the first woman as secretary-general. She said while she had to make trade-offs between family life and public service at UNCTAD, being the first woman in charge there shaped her leadership.
"I am not waiting for special treatment. I want equal treatment," she told Reuters.
An economist, Grynspan describes herself as a "mature leader" who would lead a more agile U.N. through collaboration with other players while defending its core values.
Michelle Bachelet
Bachelet, 74, is a two-time president of Chile and a former U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, who also served from 2010 to 2013 as executive director of women's rights agency U.N. Women.
Although supported by Brazil and Mexico, in March Chile withdrew its backing for Bachelet after a rightward shift in the country's leadership.
Bachelet has faced criticism from U.S. conservatives for her pro-choice stance on abortion, and in April, Washington's U.N. envoy, Mike Waltz, appeared to torpedo her bid by saying he shared a U.S. senator's concerns about her suitability.
Republican Senator Pete Ricketts said Bachelet had not done enough as U.N. human rights chief to label China's actions against Uyghur Muslims a genocide. Beijing has not stated its position on her candidacy.
Macky Sall
The 64-year-old geologist was Senegal's president for 12 years until 2024.
Sall seeks to support developing countries burdened by debt and has called for an overhaul of the Security Council as developing nations seek permanent seats on the most powerful U.N. body.
"More than ever, a reinvented multi-lateralism remains the best way to respond to the challenges of a world in full transformation," he said on X.
Sall was nominated by Burundi. If chosen, he would be the third African secretary-general after Boutros Boutros-Ghali and Kofi Annan.
Maria Fernanda Espinosa
Espinosa was foreign affairs minister and defense minister in Ecuador in the government of former President Rafael Correa. She was nominated by Antigua and Barbuda.
Espinosa, 61, has also advised the U.N. and non-governmental organizations on biodiversity, and climate change and Indigenous peoples' policies.
Former roles as Ecuador's ambassador to the U.N. and president of the General Assembly have given her inside knowledge of the global institution, she said in her vision statement.
"I offer a candidacy grounded in a simple conviction: the U.N. must recover the courage to prioritize, the discipline to deliver, and the political confidence to act with purpose," she said.
Carolyn Allison Farida Rodriques Birkett
A career diplomat and former politician, Rodrigues Birkett has served as Guyana's permanent representative to the U.N. since 2020. She previously became the first woman and the highest-ranking Indigenous person to serve as Guyana's foreign minister.
She has held senior roles at the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization. If elected, Rodrigues Birkett would become the first woman and first Caribbean national to lead the United Nations.
Rodrigues Birkett has pledged to make the U.N. more effective by strengthening conflict prevention and advancing climate action.
Olara Otunnu
Otunnu, a diplomat and former U.N. under-secretary-general, was nominated by Uganda. At 75, he is the oldest of the current candidates for the role.
In his vision statement, Otunnu stressed the need to continue institutional reforms and said he would give immediate priority to efforts to help end major international conflicts.
He also pledged to work to establish a body to oversee U.N. work on AI and highlighted the need for climate change action that does not undermine economic development.
