1981 United Nations Secretary-General selection straw polls, an innovation that became the standard method for selecting a Secretary-General in future open selections. Waldheim's defeat also confirmed the informal two-term limit on the office of Secretary-General, and Pérez's selection firmly established the principle of regional rotation. The Secretary-General of the United Nations is appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council. Therefore, candidates for the office can be vetoed by any of the permanent members. In 1981, Kurt Waldheim of Austria was finishing up his second term as Secretary-General, despite Chinese preferences for a Secretary-General from the Third World. In the 1971
1981 United Nations Secretary-General selection during the selection and did not campaign for office, became the clear favorite. Otunnu immediately moved to a formal vote. The Security Council rallied around the favorite and selected Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru to be Secretary-General for a five-year term beginning 1 January 1982. The General Assembly ratified his selection by acclamation on 15 December 1981. Pérez became the first U.N. Secretary-General from Latin America. Since the Third World held a majority of the votes in the General Assembly, diplomats expected that Waldheim would be the last European to hold the office, and all future Secretaries-General would come