Ex-Senegal President Macky Sall Withdraws from Race to Lead the UN

Macky Sall announced Saturday that he was withdrawing from the seven-person race to become UN secretary-general, a day after an informal Security Council poll produced no clear favourite. He said he hoped to help a consensus candidate emerge and noted that the votes appeared to favour a candidate from Latin America and the Caribbean, perhaps a woman. All seven contenders received at least one “discourage” vote, while Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan had the most “encourage” votes but also received five discouraging votes. Antonio Guterres’s term ends on December 31; the next secretary-general needs nine Security Council votes and must avoid a veto from any of the five permanent members.