The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday elected five countries to serve as non-permanent members of the UN Security Council for the 2026-2027 term. These include the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Liberia, representing the African Group.
Also elected were Bahrain, Colombia and Latvia, who will take over their seats on January 1, 2026, replacing Algeria, Guyana, South Korea, Sierra Leone and Slovenia. All five new members secured the required two-thirds majority in the 193-member General Assembly, with Bahrain receiving 186 votes, the DRC 183, Liberia 181, Colombia 180 and Latvia 178.
This will mark the DRC’s third term on the Council, while Liberia is returning for a second term. Bahrain and Colombia are also returning members. Colombia previously served seven terms. However, Latvia will join the Council for the first time in its history.
The UN Security Council consists of 15 members, five permanent and ten non-permanent. Five permanent members (China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States) have veto power, while the ten non-permanent seats are filled by regional elections for staggered two-year terms.
Under the UN’s regional rotation system, the current election allocated two seats to Africa, one seat to the Asia-Pacific Group, one seat to the Latin American and Caribbean Group, and one seat to the Eastern European Group. Each elected member will begin their term in early 2026 and contribute to global peace and security decisions until the end of 2027.