1981 United Nations Secretary-General selection Pérez de Cuéllar for a second term as Secretary-General. Although Pérez received only "hints" of financial support for the U.N., he felt obligated to accept his selection. "To decline in such circumstances would have been tantamount to abandoning a moral duty toward the United Nations," he said in his acceptance speech. 1981 United Nations Secretary-General selection A United Nations Secretary-General selection was held in 1981. Kurt Waldheim ran for an unprecedented third full term as Secretary-General, losing to Salim Ahmed Salim by one vote. However, the selection deadlocked through 16 rounds of voting as China vetoed Waldheim and the United
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