The United Nations Security Council is set to conduct an initial series of informal closed-door straw poll ballots on Thursday to gauge backing for the seven candidates competing to lead the United Nations.

The contenders hail from Argentina Chile Costa Rica Ecuador Guyana Senegal and Uganda and aim to succeed António Guterres of Portugal who will conclude his second five-year term at the close of this year.

The incoming secretary-general will confront the challenge of renewing an institution facing crisis and reduced influence while facing demands to overhaul an oversized expensive bureaucracy and reduce overlap among its numerous agencies.

Straw polls represent informal non-binding votes among the Security Councils 15 members who indicate whether they encourage discourage or hold no opinion on each candidate.

The votes remain secret and only Council members attend the proceedings.

No obvious frontrunner has emerged and past patterns indicate that several rounds of voting may extend through the summer ending in late September or early October with possible delays if no consensus candidate surfaces.

Candidates Enter Race as Ballots Begin

The present field includes Argentinas Rafael Grossi who heads the UN nuclear watchdog former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet former Costa Rican Vice President Rebeca Grynspan former Ecuadorian Foreign Minister Maria Fernanda Espinosa former Guyanese Foreign Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett former Senegalese President Macky Sall and Ugandan diplomat Olara Otunnu who joined the contest last week.

Additional candidates may still enter the competition.

In early straw poll rounds identical ballots allow diplomats to assess overall support and opposition levels without disclosing whether negative votes originated from one of the five veto-holding permanent members China France Russia the United Kingdom or the United States.

In subsequent stages the permanent members employ ballots of a distinct color from those of elected members to indicate whether a candidate has drawn a discourage vote from any of them.

The Security Council ultimately passes a resolution typically in private recommending an appointment to the 193-member UN General Assembly requiring nine affirmative votes without vetoes followed by General Assembly approval which has traditionally functioned as a formality.

The current Security Council president from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its UN ambassador Zenon Mukongo Ngay told reporters on Tuesday that the first straw poll round would occur on Thursday morning.

He noted that Otunnu would be included despite not yet participating in the informal hearings completed by the other candidates.

Otunnus resume indicates that he originated the straw poll system for selecting a new secretary-general while serving as Security Council president in 1981.

Guterres Makes Syria Visit and Offers Backing in Israel Disputes

This development follows Guterres recognition of the Golan Heights as Syrian territory during a notable trip to Damascus on Saturday.

The visit marked the first by a UN chief to Syria since 2009 prior to the civil war that ended the Assad regime.

Guterres also called on the international community to engage more actively in addressing Israels role in Syria and pledged ongoing UN support on the matter.