By Winnie Kamau

Nairobi: Kenya has defeated Djibouti to get elected to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) after the UN General Assembly (UNGA) failed to choose between the two candidates during the first round.

The voting by the 15-member council’s in the Africa seat, Kenya received 129 votes against Djibouti’s 62. Kenya will replace South Africa in this election.

A first-round vote held on Wednesday had seen both countries failing to receive the required two-thirds majority of 128 votes.

Kenya now joins Norway, Ireland, India, and Mexico, which were elected on Wednesday as non-permanent members for a two-year term starting on January 1, 2021.

Canada suffered a blow after it failed to retain its seat to Ireland and Norway. In previous years, ambassadors from all UN member states had gathered in its vast UNGA chamber to vote by secret ballot, but the coronavirus pandemic forced the world body to adopt new rules.

To avoid a large gathering and ensure physical distancing, ambassadors wearing masks were given time slots for voting and spread out in the chamber to mark their ballots.

The UNSC has five permanent, veto-wielding members – China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States – and 10 elected members with seats allocated to regional groups and five new members elected every year.

It is the only UN body that can make legally binding decisions such as imposing sanctions and authorizing the use of force.

Also elected – unopposed was the Turkish diplomat Volkan Bozkir as the president of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA). He will take up the role later this year.

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