The Case for a Globally Elected UN Secretary-General: Enhancing Legitimacy and Effectiveness
The United Nations, founded in the ashes of the Second World War, stands as the primary institution for collective security and global cooperation. Yet, in a 21st-century world defined by rising global consciousness and interconnected problems, the UN faces a persistent challenge: a crisis of legitimacy and perceived ineffectiveness. The core of this deficit lies not only in the powerful veto held by the five permanent members of the Security Council (P5) but also in the method of selecting the Organization’s chief administrative officer. To realize the UN Charter’s opening declaration, “We the peoples of the United Nations,” the Secretary-General (SG) must transition from an appointed chief bureaucrat to a globally elected representative. Direct election by the world’s population would fundamentally strengthen the SG’s mandate, dramatically increasing the UN’s democratic legitimacy and operational effectiveness.
