Michelle Bachelet, a former president of Chile and ex‑UN human rights chief, announced on Saturday that she is withdrawing her candidacy for secretary general of the United Nations. The decision was shared in a video posted to Instagram, where she said she will continue her international work with the same determination as always.

Bachelet, 74, had framed her campaign around defending multilateralism and international law, which she described as being under sustained pressure. Her withdrawal follows a third informal straw poll held on Friday that showed her support had largely evaporated. The same poll placed Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan at the top of the field.

Seven candidates remain in the contest to succeed António Guterres, whose second five‑year term ends on 31 December. The UN Security Council will soon conduct a formal vote to recommend a single candidate to the General Assembly of 193 member states; that recommendation is typically approved without change once consensus is reached.

Bachelet’s exit removes one of the more prominent names from a race that has struggled to gain traction among Security Council members.