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Saturday, August 22Saturday, August 22
Guyana’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, emerged as the frontrunner in the second informal straw poll for the next UN secretary-general, held on Friday by the 15-member Security Council. Rodrigues-Birkett, a 52-year-old former Guyanan foreign minister, received eight “encourage” votes, three “discourage” votes, and four with no opinion, according to results circulated after the poll .
Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan and Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, followed closely with seven “encourage” votes each. Grossi received six “discourage” votes, while Grynspan received four. The poll’s results were confirmed by Denmark’s Ambassador Christina Markus Lassen, the council’s president for August .
Eight candidates remain in the race to succeed António Guterres, whose second term ends on Dec. 31. The other contenders include former Senegalese President Macky Sall, former UN General Assembly President María Fernanda Espinosa of Ecuador, former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, Ugandan diplomat Olara Otunnu, and Ecuadorian diplomat Ivonne A-Baki. A-Baki, the most recent entrant, received no “encourage” votes, eight “discourage” votes, and seven with no opinion .
The straw polls are non-binding and designed to gauge support among council members before a formal recommendation is sent to the UN General Assembly for ratification. A candidate requires at least nine votes in a formal Security Council ballot to advance, with any of the five permanent members—the United States, China, France, Russia, and the United Kingdom—able to veto a nominee. Later rounds of straw polls will reveal whether a candidate has received a “discourage” vote from a permanent member .
Grynspan had led the first informal poll in July, but Rodrigues-Birkett overtook her in the second round. Diplomatic sources indicated the informal votes would continue in multiple rounds .
Meanwhile, Argentina’s Grossi, a leading contender, has drawn attention from British diplomats due to his country’s longstanding claim over the Falkland Islands, according to reporting .
In a separate development, German UN General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock faced criticism from the United States and Russia for allegedly overstepping in the secretary-general selection process. “It is an awkward move by her,” a correspondent quoted officials as saying .
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Rafael Grossi is among the favourites to become the new secretary-general, posing a headache for British diplomats as tensions rise over the islands
bluesky_The Times · about 4 hours ago
Danska zveza odrekla podporo Infantinu, želi zanesljivejšega vodjo Fife Danska nogometna zveza (Dbu) je sporočila, da predsedniku Fife Gianniju Infantinu ne zaupa več, potem ko je opustil načrt za prodajo komercialnih deležev v tekmovanjih pod krovno zvezo, vključno s svetovnim prvenstvom, ter povzročil pravi razkol.
rtv slovenia · about 4 hours ago
Nachfolge von Frank-Walter Steinmeier: SPD besteht auf Frau für das Bundespräsidentenamt Die SPD will, dass eine Frau die Nachfolge von Bundespräsident Frank-Walter Steinmeier antritt. Einen Namen will die Partei vorerst nicht nennen.
die zeit · about 4 hours ago
Hon är ny favorit till att ta över FN Efter ännu en informell omröstning i FN:s säkerhetsråd har Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett från Guyana klivit fram som ny favorit till att bli världsorganisationens nya generalsekreterare.
svenska dagbladet · about 5 hours ago
Vote pour le nouveau secrétaire général de lONU : Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett vire en tête Lancienne ministre des Affaires étrangères du Guyana a pris lavantage vendredi lors du second «vote indicatif» au sein du Conseil de sécurité. Mais le scrutin est encore loin de sa conclusion.
liberation · about 5 hours ago
„Es ist ein ungeschickter Move von ihr – USA und Russland schießen gegen Baerbock Annalena Baerbock gerät als Präsidentin der UN-Generalversammlung in die Kritik. Die USA und Russland werfen ihr vor, sich zu stark in die Wahl des nächsten Generalsekretärs einzumischen. „Man kann beide Positionen nachvollziehen, so Korrespondent Jan Klauth.
welt.de · about 5 hours ago
Fifa general secretary Mattias Grafström could stand against Infantino in election
bluesky_The Guardian · about 6 hours ago
Stop gaslighting me!: Florida Democrats Senate nominee and party chair have heated call over socialism Floridas new Democratic Senate nominee, Angie Nixon, and the state partys chair had a heated conversation Friday which included a yelling match about the impact of socialism and the challenges of campaigning in a red state like Florida, three people familiar with the conversation tell Axios.Why it matters: The conflict exposes the fault line in the party between the progressive base embodied by Nixon and the establishment represented by the state partys chair, Nikki Fried.Democrats already face an uphill battle in their effort to unseat Republican Sen. Ashley Moody. An escalating war of words between Nixon and Fried complicates efforts to unify Democrats.Zoom in: Nixon, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America who won the primary in a shocking upset over Alex Vindman earlier this week, expressed frustrations to Fried that she had not received sufficient help from the state party.Fried, in return, warned that Nixons ties to the DSA could give an opening to the GOP to attack her, sources told us.According to two people who spoke with Nixon, both she and Fried yelled at each other over the course of the call. Another person who spoke to Fried said the chair did not yell but was yelled at."Nikki wants her to back away from DSA, from socialism," said one person who spoke with Nixon. "Shes listening to other people saying that theyre afraid, theyre scared — the Jewish members and the Hispanic caucus. But to Angie, Nikki doesnt want Angie to be who Angie is. Angie has already done the backing-away."On the call, Nixon told Fried, "You never gave a care about me from the beginning, and now youre telling me how to run my campaign?" according to the source.At one point, the source said, Nixon yelled, "stop gaslighting me!"The other side: A Florida Democratic Party official disputed that Fried yelled at Nixon.The official also said that the state party tried multiple times to contact Nixons team about the coordinated campaign, but often havent had their calls returned.But, the person added, Nixons field team did participate in a call with the partys coordinated campaign this week."The DSA label could create an opening for misinformation and allow Angies opponents to define her in ways that dont reflect her actual record or positions, rather than letting voters hear directly from Angie about what she believes and what shes running on," the source said.Nixons campaign declined to comment.Between the lines: A second person who talked to Nixon described the feud as "a clash of ideology — but its also a clash of personalities.""Nikki needs to be careful," the person added. "She cant afford to be seen by black voters disrespecting a black woman."Another Florida Democratic official with knowledge of the dispute said Nixon and Fried have never been friendly and that Fried "was very disappointed that Angie won. She made that pretty well known."Before the election, the source said, Fried was predicting Nixon would lose and was "calling around telling people, Hey, can you make sure when he wins that Angie is nice and welcoming and does all the things to bring everybody together?""I know Nikki doesnt like it, but Angie is the engine right now. Angie is the national story, and Nikki just cant stand it."One of the Florida Democratic Party sources said that the organization did not favor Vindman over Nixon and was neutral in the primary. The big picture: Frieds concerns about socialism and its potential effect in the general election are widely shared in the Democratic Party, from Florida to Washington.But worries are most acute when considering two groups of voters, mainly clustered in South Florida: members of the Democrats Hispanic caucus with roots in Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Colombia, where many fled leftist revolutions and violence, and Jewish Democrats, who are opposed to the DSAs fierce anti-Zionism and protesting tactics.The intrigue: What caught Nixon off guard, she told others, was that she was in the process of distinguishing herself from the DSA anyway.Nixon said she joined the organization for grassroots organizing help during the primary because the establishment was arrayed against her. And she agreed with their stances on housing, public education, corporate power and Medicare for All.But since winning, she moved fast to distance herself from several DSA positions, saying she doesnt back abolishing all prisons — just for-profit ones, she doesnt support "defunding" police or having so-called "open borders," and she disagreed with the national DSAs controversial commemoration of Fidel Castro.So far, Nixon has had an easier time finding common ground with David Jolly, the ex-Republican now running as the Democratic nominee for governor.Before her heated call with Fried, Nixon and Jolly had a friendly conversation, according to a person familiar with the talk.But Jollys camp and financiers have expressed concerns about how Republicans will exploit the issue of socialism now that he shares the ballot with Nixon.Jollys campaign has been fine-tuning his messaging to both praise Nixon as a fighter, emphasize what they agree with and respectfully raise where they disagree — socialism.In addition to facing Republican Byron Donalds who seeks to be the first Black governor in Florida history with $100 million already raised, Jolly is contesting with an independent run by Desmond Meade, the Black man who successfully restored voting rights to felons
axios · about 10 hours ago
ΟΗΕ: Η Ροντρίγκες Μπίρκετ προηγείται στη δεύτερη άτυπη ψηφοφορία του Συμβουλίου Ασφαλείας για τον επόμενο Γενικό Γραμματέα Η δεύτερη άτυπη ψηφοφορία πραγματοποιήθηκε στην αίθουσα διαβουλεύσεων του Συμβουλίου Ασφαλείας, βάσει των διαδικασιών που είχαν συμφωνήσει τα μέλη του Συμβουλίου τον Μάιο - O Γενικός Γραμματέας διορίζεται από τη Γενική Συνέλευση κατόπιν σύστασης του Συμβουλίου Ασφαλείας
protothema · about 11 hours ago
Guyanas Rodrigues Birkett leads informal poll in race to be next UN leader Guyanese diplomat emerges narrowly ahead as the council works towards consensus before Guterres departs.
aljazeera · about 12 hours ago