On the first of January 2017, António Guterres will take his post as UN Secretary General. Guterres was elected in spite of the encouragment of current Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to choose a woman as head of the UN, and the campaign WomanSG, which gathered more than 50 member states in suppport of a female Secretary General. She would have been the first in the 70-year history of the UN.
There was no lack of competent female contendesr: 7 of the 13 candidates were women. Still, one of the most influential political positions will remain exclusively held by men. The Secretary General is chosen by the Security Council and confirmed in the General Assembly.