US encourages Viktor Orbán to run for UN secretary-general as joint US, Russia, and China pick - report
None of the candidates has secured enough support in six rounds of informal Security Council straw polls, leaving an opening for late entrants. Lana Nusseibeh of the UAE entered the race last week
The Trump administration has encouraged former Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán to enter the race for UN secretary-general, with the plan being for him to run as a joint candidate of the United States, Russia, and China, according to sources who spoke to the Wall Street Journal. The plan awaits a final decision.
A State Department official said the idea sounds crazy at first, but that Russia and China are believed to be supportive based on prior conversations with Washington. Moscow and Beijing have not formally announced their support.
The idea reportedly originated with US officials, who kept raising “someone like Orbán” while discussing who they wanted atop the UN, and Chinese and Russian counterparts agreed, according to the report.
The State Department official counted eight Security Council votes “comfortably” for Orbán, with 10 within reach among the 15 council members. Britain and France, which are typically cautious about using their veto power, could still block his selection.
The official called Orbán “the dream MAGA-conservative candidate,” while an official from a second country said the other candidates are heavy on “secretary,” with bureaucratic or behind-the-scenes diplomatic experience, whereas Orbán would be a “general.”
US officials contacted Orbán to gauge his interest and found him receptive, though with reservations as a nationalist politician. He is not looking to run unless he is confident he can win, the report said. Orbán declined to comment.
President Donald Trump endorsed Orbán in April’s Hungarian election, and Vice President JD Vance campaigned for him. If Orbán enters the race, they are expected to back him again, though a third source familiar with the process said an announcement has been waiting until after the US midterms.
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Orbán, 63, led Hungary for 16 consecutive years, from 2010 to 2026. His Fidesz party lost in April to Péter Magyar’s Tisza party, which won a two-thirds majority in parliament, and Magyar was sworn in as prime minister in May.
The race to succeed Secretary-General António Guterres, whose term ends Dec. 31, remains deadlocked. None of the candidates has secured enough support in six rounds of informal Security Council straw polls. In the latest, on Oct. 16, frontrunner Rebeca Grynspan of Costa Rica received nine votes in favor and six against, including two from veto-wielding permanent members.
Lana Nusseibeh of the United Arab Emirates entered the race last week. She is scheduled to present her candidacy at a public UN hearing on Tuesday, and the council is expected to hold another straw poll afterward.