1947 United Nations Security Council election
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3 (of 6) non-permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council | |||
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The 1947 United Nations Security Council election was held between 30 September and 13 November 1947 during the 92nd to 109th sessions of the
This was the first Security Council election to last longer than one day, and ended up deadlocked for more than six weeks over the last seat as no candidate was able to secure a required two-thirds majority. This and other deadlocks have been described as "elections by fatigue".[1] This was also the first Security Council election to challenge the then-informal concept of the United Nations Regional Groups.
Rules
Before 1965, the Security Council had 11 seats, filled by five permanent members and six non-permanent members. Three of the non-permanent members were elected in odd years and three in even years, with each member elected for a two-year term. A sitting member may not immediately run for re-election.[2] To be elected, a candidate must receive a two-thirds majority of those present and voting. Voting is done by secret ballot.
Proceedings
At the time, the Regional Groups assigned to each seat were informal and based on "gentlemen's agreements" between the original three
).After the first round of votes,
Seven deadlocked voting rounds occurred on the first day of the election. After the fourth, sixth, and seventh rounds, various members of the General Assembly motioned to postpone the vote. The last motion succeeded and the eighth round was postponed.[5]
On the second day, 1 October 1947, two more deadlocked rounds occurred, after which the
On 20 October 1947, two more deadlocked rounds occurred, after which the President of the General Assembly postponed the twelfth round with no objections. The next ballot would not be put back onto the agenda until 13 November.[7]
Throughout the rounds, both the Soviet Union and India argued their positions using the
On 13 November 1947, India withdrew its candidacy, stating that it did not want to be perceived as holding up the work of the General Assembly. The Ukrainian SSR was elected to the last seat on the twelfth round.[8]
Result table
Member | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 | Round 6 | Round 7 | Round 8 | Round 9 | Round 10 | Round 11 | Round 12 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Argentina | 41 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Canada | 41 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Ukrainian SSR | 33 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 33 | 34 | 33 | 31 | 32 | 29 | 30 | 35 |
India | 29 | 24 | 25 | 25 | 23 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 2 |
Czechoslovakia | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Uruguay | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Chile | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Ethiopia | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Greece | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Guatemala | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Philippines | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
abstentions | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 15 |
invalid ballots | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
required majority | 38 | 36 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 36 | 38 | 35 | 37 | 26 |
ballot papers | 57 | 56 | 56 | 57 | 57 | 57 | 57 | 56 | 57 | 55 | 57 | 54 |
In an inconsistency, a UN document from 2005 listing deadlocked elections states that some rounds in 1947 were restricted (only the deadlocked candidates may be voted on) while other rounds were unrestricted.[1] However, the meeting records from 1947 state that all rounds were restricted.
See also
References
- ^ a b UN Document A/59/881 Note Verbale from the Permanent Mission of Costa Rica containing a record of Security Council elections up to 2004
- ^ Charter of the United Nations, Article 23
- ^ Agam, Hasmy; Sam Daws; Terence O'Brien; Ramesh Takur (26 March 1999). What is Equitable Geographic Representation in the Twenty-First Century (PDF) (Report). United Nations University. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
- ^ "A/PV.92".
- ^ a b "A/PV.93".
- ^ a b "A/PV.94".
- ^ "A/PV.96".
- ^ a b "A/PV.109".