nominates

Sept. 26 (UPI) — Chilean President Gabriel Boric has officially nominated former President Michelle Bachelet as a candidate for U.N. secretary-general, launching her bid to lead the organization in 2027.

“Michelle Bachelet is not only a widely known and respected figure on the global stage. She is a woman whose life story is deeply consistent with the values that inspire this organization. She has served twice as Chile’s president and was, of course, the first woman to do so,” Boric said In his address Tuesday to the General Assembly,

He added that in her roles as executive director of U.N. Women and U.N. high commissioner for human rights, Bachelet “has governed, negotiated, healed and listened.” Her career allows her, in “times of fragmentation and mistrust,” to be a figure capable of building bridges.

The term of U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres of Portugal ends in December 2026. Only Bolivian Vice President David Choquehuanca has also been nominated, and Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, has said he wants the position.

In July, a group of 36 former Latin American foreign ministers issued a statement stressing the urgent need to renew U.N. leadership, calling for stronger regional representation and for a woman to lead the organization.

Similarly, the former diplomats warned of “a clear gap in global representation,” noting that Latin America and the Caribbean have had only one U.N. secretary-general in eight decades — Peru’s Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, who served from 1982 to 1991 — and they called on member states “to support our region in taking on this responsibility in the next cycle.”

Several women have been mentioned as potential candidates for the U.N. leadership.

Costa Rican economist Rebeca Grynspan, 69, is secretary-general of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development and a former vice president of Costa Rica. She is seen as a leading contender because of her long career and close ties within the U.N. system.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has endorsed biologist and diplomat Alicia Bárcena, Mexico’s environment secretary and former executive secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Ecuadorian diplomat María Fernanda Espinosa has also been mentioned. She presided over the 73rd session of the U.N. General Assembly, becoming the first woman to hold that post. She has also served as foreign minister and ambassador to the United Nations.

Mia Amor Mottley, 60, is a Barbadian politician and attorney who has served as the eighth prime minister of Barbados since 2018 and as Leader of the Barbados Labour Party since 2008. Mottley is the first woman to hold either position.

“There are other very competent candidates, which is why a strong diplomatic effort and the presentation of a program for U.N. governance in difficult times will be key to standing out from the rest,” Heraldo Muñoz, former foreign minister of Chile, told UPI.

Muñoz also served as assistant secretary-general of the U.N. Development Program for Latin America and the Caribbean and as Chile’s ambassador to the United Nations.

He added that by announcing its candidate before the General Assembly, Chile “immediately positioned the former president’s bid before member states, the international press, commentators who follow world politics and civil society.”

He stressed that what comes next is hard work by Chile’s foreign ministry to deploy “its diplomatic resources to secure formal support from member states in different regions. They will have to be convinced by Michelle Bachelet’s experience in senior U.N. positions.”

Once candidates are officially nominated, the election of the next U.N. secretary-general has two stages.

All members of the Security Council must vote on a candidate. If any of the five permanent members veto the choice, that candidate is immediately out of the race. When a consensus emerges, the name is submitted to the General Assembly, which then votes to ratify or reject the appointment.

“It will be necessary to pay special attention to the 15 members of the Security Council, which proposes a name to the General Assembly. Priority work will be required with the five permanent members, who hold veto power over the candidacies,” Muñoz said.

René Jara, a political scientist and professor at the University of Santiago, said that “any alliance that can be made with other countries, particularly with the BRICS, is important.”

Jara added that the election will pit two forces against each other: those who support U.S. foreign policy and “those who will be a counterweight to those policies.” In his view, “that will be the big battle.”

Aug. 11 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Monday nominated economist E.J. Antoni as commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a non-partisan agency he has criticized.

If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, the chief economist with the conservative Heritage Foundation would replace Erika McEntarfer, who was fired by Trump on Aug. 1, alleging that she had manipulated the jobs reports for three months.

“I am pleased to announce that I am nominating Highly Respected Economist, Dr. E.J. Antoni, as the next Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Our Economy is booming, and E.J. will ensure that the Numbers released are HONEST and ACCURATE. I know E.J. Antoni will do an incredible job in this new role. Congratulations E.J.!”

Before the Heritage Foundation, he worked for the Texas Public Policy Commission. He holds master’s and doctorate degrees in economics from Northern Illinois University.

Last week, Antoni posted on X: “There are better ways to collect, process, and disseminate data — that is the task for the next BLS commissioner, and only consistent delivery of accurate data in a timely manner will rebuild the trust that has been lost over the last several years.”

On Nov. 13, one week after Trump was elected again, he wrote on X: “DOGE needs to take a chainsaw to the BLS.”

Antoni had called for the firing of McEntarfer on Steve Bannon‘s podcast after the July jobs report was released. Later that day, she lost her job.

“Last weeks Job’s Report was RIGGED,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, three days after the report came out. “Those big adjustments were made to cover up, and level out, the FAKE political numbers that were CONCOCTED in order to make a great Republican Success look less stellar!!!”

Bannon, who was Trump’s chief strategist for a portion of his first term, had advocated for hiring Antoni, who interviewed for the post, The Wall Street Journal on Sunday reported.

Senate Republicans hold a 53-47 advantage and confirmation only requires 50 votes. In January 2024, McEntarfer was confirmed 86-8.

“I don’t think there’s any grounds at all for this, for this firing, and it really hurts the statistical system,” William Beach, who was nominated by Trump during his first term, said on CNN earlier this month. “Suppose that they get a new commissioner … And they do a bad number. Well, everybody’s going to think, ‘well, it’s not as bad as it probably really is,’ because they’re going to suspect political influence. So, this is damaging.”

The BLS distributes data that is used by agencies, including the Federal Reserve, and companies. Besides monthly jobs reports, BLS also provides data on occupations, including wages and job outlook. Consumer spending is also analyzed.

The report showed 73,000 new jobs in July and unemployment rose to 4.2% from 4.1%, which was predicted and still historically low.

But the previous two months were adjusted downward. May was revised from 144,000 jobs added to 19,000 jobs added, and June’s revision went from 147,000 jobs added to 14,000, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Situation Summary.

The BLS said that monthly revisions “result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates and from the recalculation of seasonal factors.”

President Zelenskyy taps economy minister to lead government in most significant reshuffle since Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he has recommended Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko to become prime minister in a significant political shake-up for the war-scarred country.

The announcement on Monday could herald a wider reshuffle in the government, three and a half years into the Russian invasion.

“I have proposed that Yuliia Svyrydenko lead the government of Ukraine and significantly renew its work,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media. “I look forward to the presentation of the new government’s action plan in the near future.”

The recommendation is part of what he called “a transformation of the executive branch” of government in Ukraine.

The two discussed “concrete measures to boost Ukraine’s economic potential, expand support programs for Ukrainians and scale up our domestic weapons production”, Zelenskyy said.

Svyrydenko, 39, gained prominence this year during fraught negotiations around a rare minerals deal with the United States that nearly derailed ties between Kyiv and its most important military ally.

If the change is approved, she would replace Denys Shmyhal, who became prime minister in 2020.

“The government needs a change because people are exhausted,” said Tymofiy Mylovanov, a former economy minister who worked with Svyrydenko.

Mylovanov, who now heads the Kyiv School of Economics, said the changes would likely bring “a sort of freshness” after more than three years of war.

Zelenskyy is also considering naming Defence Minister Rustem Umerov as Ukraine’s ambassador to Washington, he said at a news conference last week.

Zelenskyy met Umerov over the weekend, after which he said, “Ukraine needs more positive dynamics in relations with the United States and at the same time new steps in managing the defence sector of our state.”

Svyrydenko, who is also a deputy prime minister, was appointed to manage Ukraine’s struggling economy months before the Kremlin launched its full-scale assault in February 2022.

Her appointment will require approval by parliament, which has largely united around Zelenskyy since the invasion and is unlikely to vote against the president.