The UN Security Council held a third straw poll on Friday to gauge support for candidates seeking to become the world body's next Secretary General, as world leaders prepare to gather in New York for the annual General Assembly.
Results from the secret, informal vote were not immediately available after the process, which lasted more than an hour.
"The third round of straw polls has taken place," France's UN ambassador Jerome Bonnafont, president of the Security Council for September, told reporters without disclosing the outcome.
According to diplomats, Rebeca Grynspan led the third round with nine “encourage” votes and five “discourage” votes. Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett of Guyana followed with eight “encourage” and six “discourage” votes, while Argentina’s Rafael Grossi received five “encourage” and eight “discourage” votes.
"The race now has two clear frontrunners: Grynspan and Rodrigues-Birkett. But neither has locked down enough Council support to escape the spectre of a possible P5 veto," Daniel Forti, head of UN affairs at the International Crisis Group told The National.
"The next vote, likely immediately after High-Level Week, will show whether they have staying power - or whether the race is likely to open up to new candidates."
No clear frontrunner emerged from the first two rounds, with eight candidates now seeking to succeed Secretary General Antonio Guterres when his term ends in December.
Several council members have said they would like to see a woman lead the UN for the first time in its 81-year history.
Former Guyanese foreign minister Ms Rodrigues-Birkett narrowly led the second straw poll, followed by Costa Rica's Ms Grynspan and Mr Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The other candidates are former Senegalese president Macky Sall, Ecuador's Ivonne Baki, former Chilean president Michelle Bachelet, former Ecuadorian foreign minister Maria Fernanda Espinosa and Uganda's Olara Otunnu.
Diplomats have also raised the possibility that other candidates could enter the race as the five veto-wielding permanent members of the Security Council - Britain, China, France, Russia and the US - seek consensus.
A candidate needs at least nine votes in the 15-member Security Council and must avoid a veto from any of the five permanent members. The council then recommends a candidate to the 193-member General Assembly for appointment.
The US has not publicly backed a candidate. A State Department official said on Thursday that contenders should commit to getting the UN "back to basics and publicly commit to the changes we require."
"The United States is looking for a practical, driven, and reform-focused candidate who will safeguard the valuable contributions of Member States, restore competent management and streamline the organisation significantly," the official said.
