Macky Sall withdraws from UN Secretary-General race

Former Senegalese President Macky Sall has withdrawn his candidacy for the position of United Nations secretary-general following opposition to his nomination and controversy over the African Union’s endorsement process.

In a post on X on Saturday, Mr Sall said his decision followed an informal vote held on 16 October and consultations with Burundi’s President, Évariste Ndayishimiye, the current chairperson of the African Union (AU), and Senegalese President Bassirou Faye, the current chairperson of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

“Following the informal vote on October 16, 2026, for the election to the position of Secretary-General of the United Nations, and after consultations with His Excellency Mr. Evariste Ndayishimiye, President of the Republic of Burundi, current Chairperson of the African Union, and His Excellency Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar Faye, President of the Republic of Senegal, current Chairperson of ECOWAS, I have decided to withdraw my candidacy for said position,” he said.

Mr Sall’s candidacy had faced opposition over the procedure used to secure continental backing, with several countries, including Nigeria, questioning the process and the circumstances surrounding his nomination.

Controversial AU endorsement

Mr Sall was first nominated by Burundi, whose president, Mr Ndayishimiye, assumed the rotating AU chairmanship on 14 February. The move raised questions about whether the nomination represented a national initiative or a collective African endorsement.

AU procedures require candidacies to be submitted and reviewed by the Committee of Permanent Representatives and the Ministerial Committee before being presented to the Executive Council for a decision by consensus or a two-thirds majority. The process is designed to allow collective scrutiny and consultation among member states.

However, Mr Sall’s name was absent from the list of African candidacies presented to the Executive Council at the February AU summit and was not formally discussed by heads of state, according to a report by Jeune Afrique.

Burundi subsequently circulated a draft decision to UN and AU member states in an apparent attempt to secure formal continental endorsement for Mr Sall.

The draft decision set a 24-hour deadline for objections and required opposition from at least one-third of eligible member states to block the proposed endorsement. Eligibility was restricted to countries that had met their AU financial obligations and were not under suspension.

Twenty AU member states broke the silence, including Algeria, South Africa, Liberia, Nigeria and Rwanda, according to the AU. Fourteen formally objected, while six, including Egypt, requested an extension of the deadline.

Senegal also distanced itself from the process, saying it had not been associated with Burundi’s initiative.

Egypt and Liberia later withdrew their positions, but the withdrawals did not change the outcome of the process.

The objections centred largely on procedural concerns. Several countries argued that the silence procedure was inappropriate for a substantive decision because it offered little room for discussion and imposed an unreasonably short deadline.

The requirement for objections from one-third of eligible members also departed from established practice, under which one or more objections can be sufficient to prevent a decision from being adopted through silence.

Mr Sall’s candidacy was also rejected by Senegal, his home country, amid continuing disputes over his political legacy.

Nigeria opposed nomination over regional rotation

In April, PREMIUM TIMES reported that Nigeria had objected to the AU’s designation of Mr Sall as the bloc’s consensus candidate for the UN’s top job, describing the process as procedurally flawed and inconsistent with established diplomatic norms.

Nigeria’s objection centred on the long-standing principle of regional rotation in the appointment of the UN secretary-general.

Abuja argued that it was the turn of Latin America and the Caribbean to produce the next secretary-general. It also noted that the AU recognises the Caribbean as its sixth region.

Nigeria warned that proceeding with Mr Sall’s candidacy could undermine Africa’s long-term standing and strategic interests within the multilateral system.

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“The Federal Republic of Nigeria sees no rationale in violating the time-honoured principle of continental rotation in the appointment of the United Nations Secretary-General,” a Nigerian diplomatic note stated at the time.

“By jettisoning this established practice, the African Union is putting its position and interest in jeopardy now and in the future,” it added.

Nigeria also complained that it had been caught off guard by the speed of the decision and the limited time given to member states to assess the nomination.

Abuja further faulted the process for failing to subject Mr Sall’s candidacy to scrutiny by the AU’s Ministerial Candidature Committee, which is responsible for vetting high-profile nominations.

Race to succeed Guterres

The position of UN secretary-general will become vacant at the end of António Guterres’ current term in December 2026.

The selection of his successor has attracted international attention, with regional backing seen as an important diplomatic advantage for candidates.

Although the position has traditionally followed a regional rotation arrangement, Mr Guterres, a former Portuguese prime minister, was elected in 2016 when Eastern Europe was widely expected to have its turn. Latin America and the Caribbean are next in line under the informal rotation convention, although the process is not a binding rule.