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Research Report
Security Council Elections 2020
The delegation of Estonia celebrates
their country’s election to the Security
Introduction: The 2020 Elections
Council, 7 June 2019. Kersti Kaljulaid,
President of Estonia, stands with
arms raised. To her right is Urmas
Reinsalu, Minister for Foreign Affairs. On 17 June, the 74th session of the UN Gen- same method would be used for additional rounds
(UN Photo/Loey Felipe) eral Assembly is scheduled to hold elections for of balloting, if required.
the Security Council, in a manner resulting from The five seats available for election in 2020
the global COVID-19 pandemic which com- according to the regular distribution among regions
pelled the closure of the UN headquarters in will be as follows:
2020, No. #2 mid-March. According to the General Assem- • one seat for the African Group (currently held by
29 May 2020
bly decision adopted on 29 May, member states South Africa);
This report is available online at would cast ballots during designated time slots at • one seat for the Asia-Pacific Group (currently
securitycouncilreport.org.
the General Assembly Hall due to limitations on held by Indonesia);
For daily insights by SCR on evolving
Security Council actions please
large gatherings at the UN due to the COVID-19 • one seat for the Latin American and Caribbean
subscribe to our “What’s In Blue” pandemic. Casting of ballots will be covered live Group (GRULAC, currently held by the Domin-
series at whatsinblue.org or follow
@SCRtweets on Twitter. on the UN webcast and the President of General ican Republic); and
Assembly will oversee the process on site. The • two seats for the Western European and Others
Security Council Report Research Report May 2020 securitycouncilreport.org 11 Introduction: The 2020 Elections Introduction: The 2020 Elections
2 The 2020 Candidates
5 Council Dynamics in 2021
Group (WEOG, currently held by Bel- every other year. The five new members elect-
7 The Process of Election gium and Germany). ed this year will take up their seats on 1 Janu-
7 Regional Groups and Established The Eastern European Group is not con- ary 2021 and will serve until 31 December
Practices testing any seat this year as its seat, held by 2022.
9 The 2017-2018 Split Term Estonia through 2021, comes up for election
10 Becoming a Candidate
10 Campaigning for the Council
11 UN Documents on Security
Council Elections
The 2020 Candidates
11 Useful Additional Resources
12 Annex 1: Rules and Process for Seven member states—Canada, Djibouti, India, with seven previous terms, and
Election to the Council: Relevant India, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico and Norway— Canada, with six previous terms, have the
Charter Provisions and Rules of are currently running for the five available most prior Council experience, followed by
Procedure
seats. Djibouti and Kenya are contesting the Mexico and Norway, each having served
13 Annex 2: Historical Background single African Group seat. Canada, Ireland four terms. Ireland, Kenya and Djibouti
14 Annex 3: Results of Recent and Norway are contesting the two WEOG have served three terms, two terms and one
Elections for Non-Permanent seats. The other two candidates, India and term, respectively.
Members of the Council Mexico, will run unopposed. All seven candi-
dates have served on the Council previously: African Seats
• India has served seven times (1950-1951, Three non-permanent seats are allocated to
1967-1968, 1972-1973, 1977-1978, Africa. One seat comes up for election during
1984-1985, 1991-1992 and 2011-2012); every even calendar year, and two seats are
• Canada has served six times (1948-1949, contested during odd years. Although there
1958-1959, 1967-1968, 1977-1978, have been exceptions, elections for seats allo-
1989-1990 and 1999-2000); cated to Africa have in the past generally been
• Mexico has served four times (1946, uncontested, as the African Group maintains
1980-1981, 2002-2003 and 2009-2010); an established pattern of rotation among its
• Norway has served four times (1949-1950, five sub-regions (North Africa, Southern Afri-
1963-1964, 1979-1980 and 2001-2002); ca, East Africa, West Africa and Central Afri-
• Ireland has served three times (1962, ca), as described in greater detail below. This
1981-1982 and 2001-2002); year, Djibouti and Kenya (both from the East
• Kenya has served twice (1973-1974 and Africa sub-region) are contesting the single
1997-1998); and African seat currently held by South Africa.
• Djibouti has served once (1993-1994). The process of selection and endorsement
The table below shows the number of of candidatures for the African Group takes
seats available per region in the 2020 elec- place within the AU structures. Given that
tion, the declared candidates, and their prior the Group could not agree on a single can-
terms on the Council. didate in 2019, the AU Executive Council
REGION SEATS MEMBER STATES RUNNING AND PREVIOUS
AVAILABLE IN TERMS ON THE COUNCIL
2020
Africa 1 Djibouti (1993-1994)
Kenya (1973-1974 and 1997-1998)
Asia-Pacific 1 India (1950-1951, 1967-1968, 1972-1973, 1977-1978,
1984-1985, 1991-1992 and 2011-2012)
Latin America and Caribbean 1 Mexico (1946, 1980-1981, 2002-2003 and
2009-2010)
Western Europe and Others 2 Canada (1948-1949, 1958-1959, 1967-1968, 1977-
1978, 1989-1990 and 1999-2000)
Ireland (1962, 1981-1982 and 2001-2002)
Norway (1949-1950, 1963-1964, 1979-1980 and
2001-2002)
2 whatsinblue.org Security Council Report Research Report May 2020The 2020 Candidates
delegated to the Permanent Representatives context of international peace and security; protection of civilians; promotion of human-
Council (PRC) the authority to consider the conflict prevention and resolution; protection itarian efforts and human rights; and implica-
candidatures of both countries and subse- of civilians in armed conflict; counter-terror- tions of the nexus between peace and security
quently endorse a single candidate. On 21 ism; and maritime piracy. It underscores the and sustainable development.
August 2019, the PRC endorsed the candi- connection between sustainable development As of 30 April, Kenya contributes 165
dature of Kenya for the African Group. In and lasting peace and security. personnel to eight UN peace operations, pre-
October 2019, the AU’s Office of the Legal As of 30 April, Djibouti contributes 166 dominantly UNAMID. Kenya also contrib-
Counsel provided a legal opinion on the deci- personnel to four UN peace operations, pre- utes an additional 3,697 troops to AU peace
sion of the PRC and concluded that the can- dominantly to the UN/AU Hybrid Mission operations, mostly AMISOM which operates
didature of Kenya as endorsed by the PRC is in Darfur (UNAMID). Djibouti also con- with the UN Security Council’s authorisation.
the final decision of the AU. tributes an additional 2,000 troops to the
Djibouti, however, has disputed the valid- AU Mission to Somalia (AMISOM), which Asia-Pacific Seat
ity of the PRC’s endorsement of Kenya. Dji- operates with the UN Security Council’s Two non-permanent seats are allocated to the
bouti has argued that authority to make the authorisation. Asia-Pacific Group, with one coming up for
final decision on the endorsement of candi- election every year (similar to the GRULAC
dates rests solely with the Executive Coun- Kenya seat). This year, India is running unopposed
cil and the AU Heads of State Assembly and Kenya became a UN member state in 1963 for the seat currently held by Indonesia.
that the decision of the PRC is neither final after gaining its independence that year. It has
nor binding. Djibouti has also maintained served on the Security Council twice (1973- India
that its candidacy should be given priority 1974 and 1997-1998). Kenya announced India joined the UN in 1945. A founding
over Kenya’s in line with AU principles of its candidacy in November 2017 and was member of the world body, it has served
frequency and rotation when considering endorsed by the AU in August 2019. on the Security Council seven times (1950-
candidatures for the UN Security Council. During its campaign, Kenya has main- 1951, 1967-1968, 1972-1973, 1977-1978,
Djibouti has been elected to the Council once tained that it would seek to promote mul- 1984-1985, 1991-1992 and 2011-2012). It
and Kenya two times; Djibouti last served in tilateral diplomacy, a rules-based interna- announced its candidacy for the 2021-2022
1993-4 and Kenya in 1997-8. tional system, and to support coordination term in November 2013 and was endorsed by
efforts between permanent and non-per- the Asia-Pacific Group in June 2019.
Djibouti manent members of the Council and con- India has emphasised its unique position
Djibouti became a UN member state in 1977 tinue building bridges between the Security as a democratic country with a population of
after gaining its independence that year and Council, the UN Peacebuilding Commis- over one billion. India has been a long-stand-
has served on the Security Council once sion (PBC) and other UN organs and bod- ing proponent of Security Council reform,
(1993-1994). Djibouti announced its candi- ies. Kenya also hopes to promote inclu- including the expansion of its membership
dacy in March 2016 and officially launched sive and triangular coordination among (both permanent and non-permanent) to bet-
its campaign in December 2019. the Security Council, UN Secretariat and ter reflect contemporary geopolitical realities.
Djibouti underscores the importance of troop-contributing countries. As one of the largest troop and police contrib-
achieving peace, stability, and development Kenya has underscored the importance of utors, India has emphasised its durable com-
in Africa, considering that African issues advancing regional peace and security issues, mitment to UN peacekeeping. In this context,
occupy a significant portion of the Council’s especially the AU Peace and Security Council it has highlighted the importance of better
agenda. Djibouti would seek to promote dia- (PSC) priorities including the “Silencing the coordination and cooperation among troop-
logue, multilateral diplomacy, and advance Guns” initiative. In this regard, it will strive to and police-contributing countries, the Securi-
principles set forth in the UN Charter. Dur- strengthen the relationship between the Secu- ty Council and the UN Secretariat. It has also
ing its campaign, Djibouti has emphasised its rity Council and AU PSC, as well as between advocated for greater involvement of women
contribution to security in its region, espe- the Security Council and other regional secu- in UN peacekeeping. India has stressed con-
cially in stabilising Somalia, and it has noted rity organisations. It has highlighted its role flict prevention and peacebuilding as critical
the importance of its strategic position on the in conflict prevention and resolution, as well to efforts to achieve lasting peace and security.
Red Sea. Djibouti has indicated its support as its contributions to peacekeeping efforts, India would seek to advance discussions on
for the UN in its efforts to strengthen peace- in Africa. Furthermore, Kenya has indicat- counter-terrorism related issues, emphasis-
keeping operations and also highlighted its ed that it would advocate and explore viable ing the need for better regional and interna-
role as an active troop contributor country. options for regular, predictable and sustain- tional cooperation to combat terrorism. It has
It has further emphasised the importance of able funding to support the critical work of underscored the need for greater engagement,
expanding cooperation between the Council AU peace operations and supplement fund- in general, between the UN and other region-
and regional and sub-regional organisations. ing from the AU and its member states. al and sub-regional organisations to promote
Djibouti has highlighted the importance Kenya has highlighted its interest in the international peace and security.
of recognising the impact of climate change following thematic issues: counter-terrorism; As of 30 April, India contributes 5,434
on peace and security. It has an interest in women, peace and security; youth, peace and personnel to nine UN peace operations, pre-
supporting a number of thematic issues on security; global environmental agenda includ- dominantly the UN Mission in South Sudan
the Council’s agenda: international law in the ing climate change; regional integration; (UNMISS), followed by the UN Organization
Security Council Report Research Report May 2020 securitycouncilreport.org 3The 2020 Candidates
Stabilization Mission in the Democratic working constructively with other members contributors to both the UN peacekeeping
Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO). to promote respect for international law. A and regular assessed budgets. Canada has
priority would be to put the dignity of peo- also stressed the need for the Council to con-
GRULAC Seat ple and respect of their rights above all other sider linkages between sustainable develop-
Two non-permanent seats are allocated to considerations. Mexico has campaigned on ment and peace and security; in this regard,
Latin America and the Caribbean, with one the premise that its tenure on the Council Canada has worked through multilateral
coming up for election every year. Since 2007 would be guided by its core foreign policy institutions to promote sustainable econom-
candidates for the GRULAC seat have gener- principles, which include self-determination, ic growth, and it would strive as a Council
ally run unopposed (with the exception of El non-intervention, peaceful resolution of dis- member to address economic inequality and
Salvador’s submitting its candidacy just days putes, legal equality of states, international instability, which it views as key drivers of
before the 2019 election on 7 June and receiv- cooperation for development, and the pro- conflict. Canada has placed a special empha-
ing six votes, with 185 going to the GRU- tection of human rights. Mexico has stressed sis on addressing gender issues and has com-
LAC’s endorsed candidate, Saint Vincent and the importance of pursuing lasting peace to mitted to working towards enhancing wom-
the Grenadines). In 2006, elections for the achieve truly sustainable development. Mex- en’s participation in peacekeeping, mediation
GRULAC seat on the Security Council for ico has also emphasised that it will build on and conflict prevention efforts. It has stressed
the 2007-2008 term were inconclusive after 47 its pacifist tradition, prioritising dialogue that climate change represents a fundamen-
rounds of voting over several weeks. With the and conciliation in responding to conflicts. It tal threat to international peace and security
General Assembly unable to decide between would work towards improving the working that should be a part of the Council’s regular
Guatemala and Venezuela, Panama agreed to methods of the Council. Other issues that agenda. Canada would seek to improve the
stand and was elected on the 48th round as Mexico would pursue include women, peace working methods of the Council.
the compromise candidate. The process last- and security; climate change and security; As of 30 April, Canada contributes 35
ed from 16 October until 7 November. As a and non-proliferation. personnel to five UN peace operations.
result of this experience, an informal under- As of 30 April, Mexico contributes 13 per-
standing developed among GRULAC mem- sonnel to four UN peace operations. Ireland
bers to avoid contested elections, starting with Ireland became a UN member state in 1955
the 2007 elections for the 2008-2009 term. WEOG Seats and has served on the Security Council three
Since then, Mexico (2008), Brazil (2009), Two non-permanent seats are allocated to times (1962, 1981-1982 and 2001-2002),
Colombia (2010), Guatemala (2011), Argen- WEOG, and both come up for election every with the first time being a split term shared
tina (2012), Chile (2013), Venezuela (2014), even calendar year. This year, Canada, Ire- with Liberia (1961). It announced its candi-
Uruguay (2015), Bolivia (2016), Peru (2017), land and Norway are contesting the two avail- dacy for the 2021-2022 term in 2005.
and the Dominican Republic (2018) have all able seats, currently held by Belgium and During its campaign, Ireland has empha-
been sole candidates for the GRULAC seat Germany. sised its strong commitment to the rule of
on the Security Council. As noted previous- law, multilateralism, and the international
ly, the exception was 2019 when El Salvador Canada rules-based system. Ireland’s campaign has
decided to run against a GRULAC-endorsed Canada was a founding member state of the been based around themes of empathy, part-
candidate, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, UN in 1945. It has served on the Security nership and independence. It would seek to
which won the seat. This year, Mexico is run- Council six times (1948-1949, 1958-1959, draw from its own experiences and lessons
ning unopposed for the seat currently held by 1967-1968, 1977-1978, 1989-1990 and learned in peacemaking to help the Council
the Dominican Republic. 1999-2000). It announced its candidacy for manage conflict resolution and peacebuild-
the current election in 2016. ing efforts. Ireland has stressed the need for
Mexico Canada has structured its campaign a more integrated approach towards post-
Mexico was a founding member of the UN in around five main priorities—sustaining peace, conflict reconciliation that would involve
1945. It has served on the Security Council addressing climate change, promoting eco- peacebuilding, development, human rights,
four times (1946, 1980-1981, 2002-2003 and nomic security, advancing gender equality, and good governance. It has advocated for
2009-2010). Mexico was a part of the first and strengthening multilateralism—that it greater involvement of women and girls in
group of six elected members of the Security hopes to promote within the Council and var- peacebuilding processes and for their greater
Council in 1946 and was one of the three can- ious other multilateral fora in collaboration protection in armed conflict. It has highlight-
didates elected to serve a one year term. This with the wider UN membership. It has under- ed peacekeeping as a priority, emphasising
was done to ensure that half of the non-per- scored the need for the Council to strengthen its continuous participation in peacekeeping
manent members would change each year. It its focus on conflict prevention and peace- operations since 1958. Ireland has commit-
announced its candidacy for the 2021-2022 building and has called for enhanced cooper- ted to maintaining an independent voice and
term in January 2011 and was endorsed by ation with regional organisations to improve listening to all sides while building collective
GRULAC in June 2019. the effectiveness of peacekeeping. Canada solutions to today’s challenges. As a member
In its campaign, Mexico has said that it has highlighted its long-standing involvement of the Accountability, Coherence and Trans-
would bring its diplomatic tradition, cultural and leadership roles in the Special Commit- parency Group (ACT), Ireland would seek
values, and commitment to multilateralism tee on Peacekeeping Operations and Peace- greater transparency and accountability for
to the Council. Mexico has committed to building Commission. It is among the top ten the Council. (ACT is an initiative launched
4 whatsinblue.org Security Council Report Research Report May 2020The 2020 Candidates
in 2013 by a group of member states focusing During its campaign, Norway has high- consistently been one of the top contributors
on the Security Council’s working methods, lighted its long-standing commitment to the to the UN development system and a major
particularly those that enhance non-mem- rules-based multilateral order and its inde- donor of humanitarian and development
bers’ interaction with the Council.) During pendent voice. It has said that it would seek assistance to those affected by conflicts and
its term, Ireland would also prioritise disar- lasting solutions to armed conflict and bring disasters. Norway has indicated that it would
mament and non-proliferation issues. its extensive experience in conflict resolution seek to promote issues related to the protec-
As of 30 April, Ireland contributes 474 and peacebuilding to the Security Council. tion of civilians in armed conflict and sup-
personnel to seven UN peace operations, pre- Norway has also highlighted its track record port humanitarian principles on the Council.
dominantly the UN Interim Force in Leba- of promoting the women, peace and secu- It would advocate for greater transparency
non (UNIFIL). rity agenda—including the participation of and accountability in the work of the Coun-
women in peace processes—and its support cil and promote enhanced engagement with
Norway for international law. Norway has placed civil society and other stakeholders. Norway
Norway was one of the founding member states particular emphasis on the importance of is also part of the ACT group (see above for
of the UN in 1945. It has served on the Securi- underscoring the linkages between security more on the ACT).
ty Council four times (1949-1950, 1963-1964, and sustainable development, including by As of 30 April, Norway contributes 65
1979-1980 and 2001-2002). It announced its supporting the Council’s engagement on cli- personnel to three UN peace operations and
candidacy for the 2021-2022 term in 2007. mate change. It has emphasised that it has observer missions.
Council Dynamics in 2021
Geopolitical tensions and divisions among statements). Presidential statements—which five elected members jointly signed a letter to
Council members, notably among the perma- are adopted by consensus without a vote—fell the president of the Security Council seeking
nent members (P5), seem likely to persist fol- particularly drastically, from 21 in 2018 to 15 changes to Council working methods.
lowing the departure of five non-permanent last year. The low number of decisions may In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has
members at the end of 2020 and the arrival of be attributed to greater difficulty in reaching emerged as one of the issues that could
five newly elected members in January. consensus, and to some members’ choosing potentially have wide-ranging consequences
Increasingly strained relations among the not to aim for an outcome, particularly in con- for international peace and security and affect
P5 have affected Council dynamics and were nection with a presidency’s signature event. various situations on the Council’s agenda.
made very apparent during the COVID-19 The difficulty in reaching agreement on The pandemic has had a direct impact on
pandemic, resulting in the inability of the several issues has led regional sub-groups the Council’s working methods: the highly
Council to react promptly to this global health within the Council to demonstrate their soli- contagious nature of the new coronavirus
crisis. For the last several years, Russia and the darity on divisive issues. In 2019, the recently has prompted so-called social distancing, or
US have been on opposing sides in conflicts departed, present and future EU members the need to maintain a safe distance between
in the Middle East and Europe. China, which of the Council presented seven joint state- individuals, leading to the suspension of in-
has become increasingly assertive globally and ments and appeared together at press stake- person Council meetings. The pandemic has
in the Council, has often sided with Russia. outs. Also in 2019, the African members (A3) further exposed divisions among perma-
At the same time, the US has retreated from made joint statements, including when the nent members on issues ranging from work-
active engagement in multilateral institutions Council failed to support the AU’s call for a ing methods to an appropriate substantive
and increasingly pursues its foreign policy transition to civilian rule in Sudan. response. In the coming months, the Coun-
interests unilaterally. France, the UK and the The elected members (E10) have contin- cil will have to contend with the implications
US (P3), which were a united block for over ued to meet regularly among themselves as of the pandemic for UN peacekeeping and
a decade, have in some cases been divided on well as with the Secretary-General. They have its humanitarian impact in countries on the
issues such as the Sahel; Iran; women, peace joined forces to advance the Council’s work- Council’s agenda. Although it is difficult to
and security; and climate change and security. ing methods, making their first public state- assess how the Council’s dynamics might
Difficult and protracted negotiations have ment as a group in a Council meeting during evolve next year, the priorities raised in the
continued to be a regular feature, with push- the working methods open debate in June campaigns by the candidates, as well as their
back on language previously agreed in past 2019 (and delivering another joint statement long-standing interests, indicate some general
resolutions. This difficult dynamic among in an open video teleconference on work- patterns that might emerge.
Council members is apparent in the 2019 sta- ing methods in May). The E10 also made a Both Djibouti and Kenya have placed a
tistics. The number of formal Council deci- joint media statement in November 2019 on special emphasis on regional peace and secu-
sions was at its lowest since 1991 and find- Israeli settlement activity but have found it rity, and each, if elected, is likely to take a
ing consensus on the most contentious issues more difficult to rally around Syrian humani- keen interest in the Council’s consideration
was challenging. In 2019, the Council adopt- tarian issues than they have in the past. As of the situation in Somalia. In addition to
ed 67 decisions (resolutions and presidential well, in late 2018, the E10 and the incoming sharing a border with Somalia, both countries
Security Council Report Research Report May 2020 securitycouncilreport.org 5Council Dynamics in 2021
contribute a significant number of peace- While there have been positive develop- keeping the Council’s agenda more narrowly
keepers to AMISOM, which is authorised by ments regarding the working methods of the focused on issues that primarily involve situ-
the Security Council. A related issue in which Council in the past several years, most elected ations of armed conflict.
Djibouti and Kenya have expressed inter- members have continued to draw attention to The five Council members departing at
est is the fight against terrorism and violent aspects of the Council’s work that need fur- the end of 2020 serve as chairs of four sanc-
extremism in the Horn of Africa and beyond. ther improvement. These include inadequate tions committees and two other subsidiary
As a frequent target of the Somali-based ter- time to negotiate Council outcomes and the bodies. While it is unclear which subsidiary
rorist group Al-Shabaab, Kenya has had a limited interactivity of Council meetings. bodies newly elected members will chair, it is
long-standing interest in counter-terrorism Despite resistance by some members, the probable that the trends that have developed
in the region. In its campaign, Djibouti has Council has become progressively readier in recent years at the subsidiary level will con-
emphasised its role in counter-piracy efforts to acknowledge the relationship between tinue, subject to evolving working methods
as well as in the global fight against terrorism. climate change and threats to security and during COVID-19 pandemic. These have
Among the current candidates, Djibou- stability in several situations on its agenda. included increased transparency in the work
ti, India, Ireland, and Kenya are significant During their campaigns, most of this year’s of the sanctions committees through public
troop contributors to peace operations and candidates have emphasised the importance briefings by the chairs, enhanced engagement
are expected to play a role in advancing the of addressing climate change as a security risk. with regional actors, and several field visits.
Council’s discussions on this topic. India has Canada, Kenya, Mexico, and Norway have There may continue to be a push for
historically been among the largest troop all placed climate change high on their list of the chairs of sanctions committees, who
contributors to UN peacekeeping operations. priorities. The question of whether the Coun- are invariably elected members, to have the
Canada is one of the top ten contributors cil is an appropriate body to discuss climate opportunity to hold the pen on the corre-
to the UN peacekeeping budget, and it has change has been raised ever since 17 April sponding country issues. Permanent mem-
had consistant interest in this issue. In the 2007, when the Council held its first open bers hold the pen on most country cases,
context of peacekeeping, Kenya has empha- debate to discuss possible implications of cli- including those in which there are sanctions
sised the need for more predictable funding mate change for international peace and secu- committees chaired by an elected member.
to support the work of AU peace operations. rity. Russia, China and the US have expressed The one current exception is Libya, for which
These candidates are likely to be interested concern about the Council’s engagement on the UK shares the pen with Germany, the
in ongoing discussions about the role of the this issue. However, other Council members, chair of the Libya sanctions committee. In a
Council in designing and overseeing the man- including permanent members France and letter to the president of the Security Coun-
dates of peacekeeping operations and efforts the UK, strongly support a role for the Coun- cil on 13 November 2018, referred to above,
to improve their effectiveness and efficiency. cil on climate and security matters. Under the permanent representatives of 15 elected
Post-conflict peacebuilding is an area of the presidency of the Dominican Republic and incoming Council members—Belgium,
interest to a number of the candidates, and in January 2019, the Security Council held Bolivia, Côte d’Ivoire, the Dominican Repub-
it appears that it will remain a key focus of an open debate focused on addressing the lic, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Germany,
the Council’s work in the coming years. This impact of climate-related disasters on inter- Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, the Nether-
is especially likely given the recent transition national peace and security. Over 70 Council lands, Peru, Poland, South Africa and Swe-
to a political mission in Haiti and transitions and other member states participated. More den—stressed their conviction that a more
to a post-peacekeeping environment that are recently, this issue was discussed in an Arria- equal distribution of work among all mem-
underway in Darfur and possibly in the Dem- formula meeting in April. bers, including through co-penholderships,
ocratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Over the past several years, a growing would improve the overall effectiveness of the
Most candidates have committed to pro- number of the Council’s elected members Council (S/2018/1024). The letter also high-
moting greater transparency and inclusive- have emphasised the interlinkages between lighted the connection between the penhold-
ness in the Council’s work. This has been development and international peace and ership and the chairing of the sanctions com-
a prominent theme in candidates’ agendas security. This trend is likely to continue in mittees, saying the Council ought to “make
during recent election cycles and an issue on 2021, given that several candidates have sim- better use of the expertise that the Chairs of
which elected members traditionally play the ilarly placed special emphasis on this issue. sanctions committees develop on the situa-
leading role. Some member states have raised The P3 have been receptive to Council dis- tions discussed in their respective committees
concerns regarding the lack of transparency cussions of links between specific aspects of and should consider promoting their role as
in the context of the Council’s adjusted work- development and peace and security. How- penholders and the automaticity of their role
ing methods in response to the COVID-19 ever, China and Russia have been more as co-penholders on the related dossiers”.
pandemic. cautious in this regard and have advocated
6 whatsinblue.org Security Council Report Research Report May 2020The Process of Election
Elections to the Council, as with other princi- In this restricted ballot, the number of coun- candidates and could ultimately fail to obtain
pal organs of the UN, require formal balloting tries included is limited to twice the number a seat. However, this has never happened.
even if candidates have been endorsed by their of vacant seats. For example, if one seat is Historically, there have been several
regional group and are running unopposed. available, only two countries can contest this instances in which extended rounds of voting
A candidate country must always obtain the round—the two that received the most votes. were required to fill a contested seat. This was
votes of two-thirds of the member states pres- Any votes for other candidates during this more common before the Council’s enlarge-
ent and voting at the General Assembly ses- restricted voting round are considered void. ment from 11 to 15 members in 1966 when it
sion. This means that at least 129 votes are This restricted voting process can continue led to several agreements to split terms, such
required to win a seat if all 193 UN member for up to three rounds of voting. If no candi- as the 1961-1962 term, split between Liberia
states vote. Member states that abstain are date has then garnered the required number and Ireland. Extended voting has still occurred
considered not voting. Under Article 19 of the of votes, unrestricted voting is reopened for despite the Council’s enlargement although
UN Charter, a member state can be excluded up to three rounds. This pattern of restricted since 1966 such situations have, with one
from voting as a result of arrears in payment and unrestricted voting continues until a can- exception, been resolved by the withdrawal of
of financial contributions. At press time, two didate is successful in securing the required one of the contenders or the election of a com-
members (the Central African Republic and two-thirds majority. promise candidate. The sole exception to this
Venezuela) are not permitted to vote in the In theory, it is possible that a country practice since 1966 was the 2016 agreement
General Assembly because of their arrears. running unopposed might not garner the between Italy and the Netherlands to split the
If no candidate obtains the required num- required number of votes of those present in 2017-2018 term. A summary of the recent
ber of votes in the first round of a contested the General Assembly in the first round of vot- voting in General Assembly elections for non-
election, voting in the next round is restricted ing. Such a country may then be challenged permanent seats on the Security Council is
to the candidates that received the most votes. in subsequent rounds by hitherto undeclared contained in Annex 3 of this report.
Regional Groups and Established Practices
For purposes of election to the Security Coun- distribution gave rise to the establishment candidates to occupy the three African seats
cil, the regional groups have been governed by of regional electoral groups as a vehicle for on the Council. Subregional groups within the
a formula set out in General Assembly reso- achieving that goal. The regional groups, as African Group tend to follow a rotation system,
lution 1991 A (XVIII), which was adopted in they now operate, are as follows: though there have been some departures from
1963 and took effect in 1966.The main feature African Group 54 members this scheme. Theoretically, under this system,
of the resolution was to amend the UN Charter every country in Africa should eventually get
to increase the number of Council members Asia-Pacific Group 54 members a turn as a candidate for a Council seat.
from 11 to 15. Under this resolution, the seats The process of selecting a candidate in the
Eastern European 23 members
previously assigned to the African and Asia- Group
African Group usually follows a defined path,
Pacific states were combined. In reality, how- in accordance with the AU rules of procedure
ever, the candidates for election to the African GRULAC 33 members cited above. First, the subregional groups
and Asia-Pacific seats operate separately, and select the potential candidate countries and
WEOG 28 members
this report reflects that customary practice. forward their names to the African Group for
Article 23 of the Charter, which estab- endorsement. The group submits the candi-
lishes the number of Council members, also The US is not a member of any group but dates to the Committee on Candidatures of
specifies the criteria that the members of the attends meetings of WEOG as an observer and the African Group in New York, which trans-
General Assembly are to apply when consid- is considered a member of this group for elec- mits the information to the AU Ministerial
ering which countries should be elected to toral purposes. In May 2000 Israel became a Committee on Candidatures. This commit-
serve on the Council. It provides that due WEOG member, initially on a temporary basis, tee follows its written rules of procedure in
regard shall be “specially paid, in the first and permanently in 2004. This enables it to put selecting candidates. The African Group and
instance to the contribution of Members of forward candidates for election by the General the AU are made up of the same members.
the United Nations to the maintenance of Assembly to various UN bodies. (For over three decades the sole exception
international peace and security and to the was Morocco, which had been a founding
other purposes of the Organization, and also African Group member of the Organisation of African Unity
to equitable geographical distribution”. Most of the groups have internal selection [OAU], the AU’s precursor, but which with-
The Charter does not define equitable geo- processes based on informal understandings. drew from membership in the OAU in 1984
graphical distribution, stipulate how it should The African Group is the exception, as it has after the organisation admitted the Sahrawi
be achieved, or suggest the composition of adopted the rules of procedure of the AU’s Arab Democratic Republic. In January 2017,
appropriate geographical groups. Howev- Ministerial Committee on Candidatures with- Morocco joined the AU.) Subregional organ-
er, the principle of equitable geographical in the International System for the selection of isations may add their endorsement before
Security Council Report Research Report May 2020 securitycouncilreport.org 7Regional Groups and Established Practices
the list goes to the AU Ministerial Commit- currently on the Council for the term 2019- The Arab Swing Seat
tee. The AU Executive Council makes the 2020. Although some have argued against the There is an established practice that spans the
final decision during an AU summit meet- “miniaturisation” of the Council by including Asia-Pacific and African Groups. As discussed
ing. Despite the written rules of procedure for too many small states, smaller countries have in greater detail in Annex 2, General Assem-
candidate selection, some countries have in maintained that they too contribute to inter- bly resolution 1991 A (XVIII) provided five
the past submitted their candidature directly national peace and security and should have seats for “Asia and Africa”, and in practice,
to the AU Ministerial Committee on Candi- the opportunity to serve on the Council. the seats have been divided into three seats
datures, bypassing the process in New York. for Africa and two for Asia. In 1967, after Jor-
The African rotation generally follows Asia-Pacific Group dan ended its two-year term in what had been
a systematic cycle based on the following In 2011, the Asian Group officially changed the Middle East seat, there was a year with
principles: its name to the Group of Asia and the Pacific no Arab state on the Council, which coincid-
• Northern Africa and Central Africa rotate Small Island Developing States, also known ed with the Six-Day War. It appears that at
running for one seat every odd calendar as the Asia-Pacific Group. The name change some point there was an informal agreement,
year; reflects the fact that more than 26 percent although there are no known records, that one
• Western Africa runs for one seat every odd of the group’s members are Pacific island seat would be reserved for an Arab state and
calendar year; and countries. that Asia and Africa would take turns every
• Eastern Africa and Southern Africa rotate The Asia-Pacific Group has no formally two years to provide a suitable candidate. As a
running for one seat every even calendar established practices of rotation to fill the two result, this seat is often called the “Arab swing
year. seats, one of which becomes available every seat”. An Arab country has always occupied
This system has meant that the African year. While it has the same number of coun- a seat on the Council since 1968.
seats are rarely contested, but there have been tries as the African Group, the Asia-Pacific
exceptions. The election in 2011 was unusual Group’s wide geographic span—from the Eastern European Group
in that three candidates (Mauritania, Moroc- Middle East to Polynesia—has led to much The Eastern European Group is the small-
co and Togo) ran for two seats. This happened looser regional coordination. est regional group, consisting of 23 member
because Mauritania decided to contest the Until the mid-1990s, there was a fair- states, with an election for one seat every odd
Northern Africa/Arab swing seat with Moroc- ly consistent South Asian presence on the calendar year. This is also the group that has
co rather than wait its turn in the rotational Council, with Bangladesh, India, Nepal and expanded the most in recent decades, with 15
cycle. Morocco prevailed, as did Togo, which Pakistan rotating seats. In practice, South new members added since 1991 because of
won the seat allocated by the African Group Asian countries rarely run against each other. the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the
to the Western Africa subregion. When Sudan One exception occurred in 1975 when India splitting of both Czechoslovakia and Yugosla-
was the endorsed candidate in 2000, Mauri- and Pakistan contested the same seat and via. Today, 11 of its countries are EU mem-
tius decided to contest the seat and won elec- eight rounds of voting were needed before bers, four—Albania, the Republic of North
tion to the Council. Pakistan prevailed. Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia—are
The picture can also become complicat- Since 1958, Japan has also been a regular candidates for EU membership, and Bosnia
ed when countries that can claim to straddle presence on the Council. When it completed and Herzegovina is considered a “potential
more than one geographic region have at times its last term at the end of 2017, Japan had candidate”. An Eastern European seat was
chosen to shift from one subgroup to another. accumulated 22 years on the Council, the included in the permanent members’ “gen-
Challengers can also emerge within the same most of any non-permanent member. Since tlemen’s agreement” in 1946 (see Annex
subregional grouping, disrupting the rotation. 1966, it has never been off the Council for 2), but soon thereafter, the meaning of that
Candidate countries can often be persuaded more than six consecutive years. agreement was contested, with the Soviet
to drop out to avoid a competitive election. The absence of a formal rotation system Union and the West vying for 20 years to
However, there have been times when rival has meant that countries frequently compete place their preferred candidates in this seat.
candidacies have emerged and continued all for the Asia-Pacific seat regardless of whether It also became a hotly contested seat among
the way through to the election. At the time a candidate declares itself far in advance or new member states that did not have a clear
of writing, this seems to be the case with the not. While larger member states have tended regional grouping. (For example, in 1955,
competing candidacies of Djibouti and Kenya. to declare their candidacy closer to the elec- when there was no Asian seat, the Philip-
In addition, within a subgroup, some coun- tion year, smaller candidate countries from pines competed with members of the Eastern
tries may choose to run more often, while oth- the region have tended to announce their European Group for a seat. When the vot-
ers choose to run infrequently or not at all. decision to run many years ahead of time.The ing remained deadlocked between Yugoslavia
A factor that seems to be coming into play only subgroup within the Asia-Pacific Group and the Philippines after 36 rounds, the two
is the growing desire by some member states that endorses its candidates is the Association countries agreed to accept a split term: Yugo-
in the region to be elected more often than of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), made slavia served on the Council in 1956 and the
strict adherence to the rotation system would up of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indo- Philippines in 1957.)
allow. Nigeria was elected for the 2014-2015 nesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philip-
term after having been a Council member in pines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam. Latin American and Caribbean Group
2010-2011. South Africa was on the Coun- After the expansion of the Council and the
cil in 2007-2008, again in 2011-2012, and is reorganisation of the regional groups that
8 whatsinblue.org Security Council Report Research Report May 2020Regional Groups and Established Practices
occurred as a result of General Assembly res- starting with the 2007 elections for the 2008- New Zealand became the “others” in WEOG.
olution 1991 A (XVIII), the Latin American 2009 term. Since then, Mexico (2008), Brazil Israel is the other non-European state that
Group took in the Caribbean states, several (2009), Colombia (2010), Guatemala (2011), participates in WEOG. With France and the
of which were members of the British Com- Argentina (2012), Chile (2013), Venezue- UK as members and the US attending meet-
monwealth, and became the Group of Latin la (2014), Uruguay (2015), Bolivia (2016), ings as an observer, WEOG includes three of
American and Caribbean States (GRULAC). Peru (2017), and the Dominican Republic the five permanent members of the Council.
It currently has 33 members. (2018) have all been unopposed candidates The Holy See is also an observer in WEOG.
Like most of the other groups, GRULAC for Council seats. In 2019, Saint Vincent WEOG practices what might be called an
has no formal rules regarding rotation. For and the Grenadines held off a late challenge open-market approach to elections, which
much of the last 60 years, non-Caribbean from El Salvador. One GRULAC seat is up produces a pattern of regularly contested
countries have tended to dominate region- for election each year. Brazil has served the candidatures that is likely to remain highly
al representation. Historically, the group highest number of terms among GRULAC competitive in the coming years.
was often able to reach consensus on “clean members and with a total of 20 years on the There are three subgroups within WEOG:
slates”. However, the group has also pro- Council, comes in second after Japan in the the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Ice-
duced two of the most protracted and bitterly length of Council service. land, Norway and Sweden), CANZ (Canada,
contested voting sessions in UN history. The Australia and New Zealand), and the Ben-
1979 contest between Colombia and Cuba Western European and Others Group elux (Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxem-
went to 154 rounds before Mexico was elect- With 28 members, WEOG is the second- bourg). There are informal understandings
ed as a compromise candidate in the 155th smallest regional group, and two seats become within the Nordic and CANZ subgroups that
round, a process that lasted from 26 Octo- available to it every even calendar year. Strict- have encouraged members to support each
ber 1979 until 7 January 1980. In 2006, elec- ly speaking, it is not a geographical group, as other’s campaigns.
tions for the GRULAC seat on the Security it comprises Western Europe plus “others”, In its first term on the Council (1951-
Council were inconclusive after 47 rounds but its members share broadly similar levels 1952), Turkey served as the Middle Eastern
of voting over several weeks beginning on 16 of economic development and political values. Council member. It occupied the Eastern
October. With the General Assembly unable The “others” subgroup is made up of three European seat twice (1954-1955 and 1961)
to decide between Guatemala and Venezuela, members of what was previously called the and has since run for the WEOG seat. Tur-
Panama agreed to stand and was elected in British Commonwealth Group. The British key participates fully in both the WEOG and
the 48th round on 7 November as a compro- Commonwealth Group grew rapidly in the Asian Group but for electoral purposes is
mise candidate. late 1950s as states in Africa and Asia became considered a member of WEOG only.
As a result of this experience, an infor- independent. Most of these newly indepen-
mal understanding developed among GRU- dent states joined either the Asian or African
LAC members to avoid contested elections, proup or GRULAC. Australia, Canada and
The 2017-2018 Split Term
In the 2016 elections, three candidates— the Netherlands had withdrawn its candida- as an exceptional case that should not set a
Italy, the Netherlands and Sweden—ran for cy in favour of Italy, which was consequent- precedent. They argued that a practice of split
the two available WEOG seats. During the ly endorsed by WEOG as the group’s only terms would have a negative impact on the
first round of voting, on 28 June, Sweden candidate. In a stand-alone vote on 30 June functionality and efficiency of the Security
received more than the necessary two-thirds 2016, Italy was elected to the seat. According Council in its responsibility for maintain-
majority of votes to be elected (134). Thus, to the agreement, the Netherlands ran as the ing international peace and security. Russia
Italy and the Netherlands contested the sec- sole and endorsed WEOG candidate in a by- noted that the last time a decision had been
ond seat. After five inconclusive rounds of election held on 2 June 2017, the same day taken on splitting a term had been more than
balloting, they were deadlocked at 95 votes as the regular elections for non-permanent 50 years earlier, following which the Coun-
each, well short of the 128 votes needed to members of the Council for the 2018-2019 cil’s workload had greatly increased, and said
win. The two countries then announced they term, and Italy relinquished its seat on 31 it was “gravely disappointed by the inability
had agreed to split the two-year term, where- December 2017. of the Western European and other States to
upon the meeting was suspended. On 29 Russia and a non-permanent member designate a candidate by consensus, which
June 2016, the chair of WEOG said in a let- during the 2016-2017 term, Egypt, out- has led to the current stalemate”.
ter to the president of the General Assembly lined their concerns about the arrangement Article 23(2) of the UN Charter states
(A/70/964) that, in view of the inconclusive between Italy and the Netherlands in let- that the non-permanent members of the
results, Italy and the Netherlands had agreed ters to the president of the General Assem- Security Council shall be elected for a term
to split the 2017-2018 term for the remaining bly (A/70/971 and A/70/974). Both said that of two years. Split terms started to appear
non-permanent seat. The letter indicated that they viewed the agreement to split the term in the late 1950s because of disagreements
Security Council Report Research Report May 2020 securitycouncilreport.org 9The 2017-2018 Split Term regarding regional rotation and associated By-elections are in line with Rule 140 of the membership of the Council was enlarged Cold War politics and to accommodate the Rules of Procedure of the General Assem- from six to ten and regional representation aspirations of newly independent countries. bly, which states: “Should a member cease to was introduced. (For further background, Two candidates would occasionally agree belong to a Council before its term of office see “Security Council Elections: Italy and the to split a term following multiple rounds of expires, a by-election shall be held separately Netherlands Agree to a Split Term”, What’s in inconclusive voting. The member that was at the next session of the General Assembly Blue, 29 June 2016: http://www.whatsinblue. elected first would relinquish its term after to elect a member for the unexpired term”. org/2016/06/security-council-elections-italy- one year on the Council, thus enabling the The practice of splitting terms ended in and-the-netherlands-agree-to-a-split-term. holding of a by-election to fill the vacant seat. the mid-1960s when the non-permanent php.) Becoming a Candidate Most candidate countries follow a fairly stan- intention to seek a Council seat by notify- president of the General Assembly, or both, dard path in announcing and pursuing their ing the rotating monthly chair of its respec- although this is not required by the General bids for the Council with the exception of tive regional group in New York. This is done Assembly’s rules of procedure. candidates from the African Group, which in writing, specifying the two-year term the As the relevant election year approaches, has a more complex process, as described country seeks. The chair then incorporates the regional group may decide to give its earlier. If the country is a member of a subre- that information into the UN candidacy chart endorsement, and, nearer to the election date, gional group, it will often first inform mem- of the regional group, which is maintained by the chair of the regional group will inform the bers of that group of its intention to run and each group and reviewed at monthly group president of the General Assembly whether seek support. The endorsement of the sub- meetings. Most candidate countries then pre- elections will be contested or not. This allows regional group then becomes an important pare a circular note to all missions in New the Secretariat to prepare documentation for factor in the next step. York informing them of the candidacy. Most the election process. A candidate country formalises its also send a note to the Secretariat or the Campaigning for the Council Candidates seek voting pledges from mem- secrecy of the ballot, there are incentives to To secure voting commitments from mem- ber states, often years in advance of the elec- pledge support to all candidates in a competi- ber states, candidate countries may volunteer, tion, and may continue to do so up until tive election. Knowing that commitments are or be asked for, inducements. For example, a the vote. Campaigning for the Council can not always secure, some candidate countries candidate may offer development assistance involve significant investments of time and repeatedly cultivate those countries that have to a member state in seeking its vote, or it financial resources, although funds brought already promised to vote for them, seeking may promise that while on the Council it will to bear vary greatly depending on a number reassurances that they have not changed their bring attention to or avoid an issue of concern of factors, including the wealth of the candi- minds. Candidates often seek pledges from to that member state. Arranging trips to the date and whether the candidacy is contested. member states at many levels of government. candidate’s capital or holding workshops on (Candidates predictably tend to spend less in As candidate countries generally focus (uncontroversial) issues of interest in attrac- unopposed elections.) their campaigns on influencing the voting tive locations have been used by several can- Commitments are sought in writing, orally, decisions of diplomats in member state capi- didates in recent years to raise the profile of or both. Votes are cast by secret ballot, mak- tals and at UN headquarters, the foreign min- their campaign and attract permanent repre- ing it impossible to determine whether mem- ister and permanent representative to the UN sentatives, who will cast the actual vote, to these ber states have kept their promises. There are play significant roles in the campaign process. events. So-called “swag bags” filled with items several reasons why pledges may be broken. Additionally, particularly in contested elec- imprinted with the logo of the candidate that A high-level official in the capital may pledge tions, many candidates employ special envoys, are handed out within UN circles are intended the country’s vote to a particular candi- usually former senior government officials or to increase the outreach of the campaign. On date but fail to convey the commitment to diplomats, who travel to capitals seeking vot- the day of the elections, permanent representa- the permanent mission to the UN in New ing pledges from high-level officials. Depend- tives were customarily offered gifts by most can- York, where the votes are cast. Or, if there is a ing on their campaign strategies and resources, didates, even those headed for an unopposed change in government, the new government candidate countries may use multiple envoys, election. On 8 September 2017, however, the may not consider itself bound by the pledg- often focusing their efforts on regions where General Assembly adopted resolution 71/323 es of a previous administration. Given the they lack strong diplomatic representation. on the revitalisation of the work of the General 10 whatsinblue.org Security Council Report Research Report May 2020
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