Archive · 9 Aug 2026
Costa Rican diplomat Rebeca Grynspan leads UN chief race
The United Nations is a big group of almost every country in the world, and it has one main leader called the Secretary-General.
Right now that leader is Antonio Guterres, and his job will end on 31 December 2026.
So the countries are choosing who will be the next leader.
A woman named Rebeca Grynspan from Costa Rica is currently doing the best in the early votes.
If she wins, she will make history as the first woman and the first Jewish person to lead the United Nations.
Her parents were refugees who escaped Europe during World War Two.
Her closest competitor is Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett from Guyana.
The countries will keep voting in more rounds, and we should know the answer around October.
The new leader will face a hard job, because the United Nations is planning to cut about 20 percent of its workers.
The next leader will also need to help the UN stay important in a changing world.
Costa Rican diplomat Rebeca Grynspan emerged as the frontrunner in the first UN Security Council straw poll for the next secretary-general.
Grynspan received 10 'encourage' votes, four 'no opinion' votes and one 'discourage' vote among seven candidates.
If elected, she would be the first woman and the first Jewish secretary-general of the United Nations.
Guyana's former UN ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett is her closest rival, having won 49% of the vote at a Bloomberg-sponsored debate.
The final stages of the selection process are expected to take place in October, with Guterres' term ending on 31 December 2026.
- Who
- Rebeca Grynspan, Costa Rican diplomat and head of UNCTAD, who leads the race; the current secretary-general is Antonio Guterres.
- What
- The contest to select the next UN secretary-general, with the first Security Council straw poll showing Grynspan ahead of seven candidates.
- When
- The first straw poll has been conducted; final stages are expected in October, before Guterres' term ends on 31 December 2026.
- Where
- The United Nations, with candidates drawn from Latin America and the Caribbean under the regional rotation system.
- Why
- Guterres is completing his second five-year term, and the informal regional rotation tradition points to a successor from Latin America.
Grynspan's candidacy
Rival candidates and critics
Best positioned for the post
Grynspan's candidacy
Grynspan emerged strongest in the first straw poll with 10 'encourage' votes and only one 'discourage', and she is seen by some diplomats as the continuity candidate with tacit support from Guterres.
Rival candidates and critics
Rodrigues-Birkett won 49% of the audience vote at the Bloomberg-sponsored UN General Assembly debate versus Grynspan's 14%, and diplomats warn that a 'discourage' vote from Russia, China or the US could cause deadlock.
Israel-Palestine record
Grynspan's candidacy
Grynspan has personal family ties to Israel: her sister moved there at 17 to study at the Hebrew University, and her niece and nephew completed compulsory military service in the Israel Defense Forces.
Rival candidates and critics
UNCTAD under Grynspan published a February 2026 report estimating the Palestinian economy lost $212.2 billion from 2000 to 2024 due to Israeli occupation policies, and she highlighted that Gaza's GDP per capita had fallen to about $161 a year.
- Frontrunner
- Rebeca Grynspan (Costa Rica)
- Current role
- Head of UNCTAD (UN Conference on Trade and Development)
- Straw poll result
- 10 'encourage', 4 'no opinion', 1 'discourage'
- Closest rival
- Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett (Guyana)
- Rival straw poll result
- 9 'encourage', 2 'discourage', 4 'no opinion'
- Current Secretary-General
- Antonio Guterres
- Term end date
- 31 December 2026
- UN planned job cuts
- Around 20% of the workforce