In accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter of the United Nations, decisions of the Security Council are made by an affirmative vote of nine members of the Council including the concurring votes of the five permanent members (China, France, Russian Federation, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America). If a permanent member casts a negative vote, the draft resolution being voted on is not passed. Security Council resolutions are customarily adopted by a recorded vote, i. e., a vote which clearly identifies the stand that a Council member took on the issue under discussion.

Voting information first becomes accessible (in unofficial form) in the press release produced immediately after the conclusion of the meeting and can later also be found in the (unofficial) compilation of resolutions issued in press release format. Official voting information can be retrieved from the record of the meeting at which the vote was taken. The annual cumulations of the resolutions of the Security Council also serve as an official source for voting information

The Dag Hammarskjöld Library maintains a database with voting records which forms the basis for the voting chart included in the Index to Proceedings of the Security Council as well as the voting information file contained in UNBISnet.

Every Security Council meeting receives coverage in the form of a press release which is issued under the series symbol SC/- immediately after the conclusion of the meeting. These press releases, which are not considered official documents, summarize the discussions conducted and actions taken by the Council. If a resolution is adopted at a particular meeting, the voting information is included in the release.

Example:

Excerpts from press release SC/6432/Rev.1 providing an unofficial summary of the 3826th meeting of the Security Council on 23 October 1997 at which draft resolution S/1997/816 was adopted as resolution 1134 (1997)

SECURITY COUNCIL EXPRESSES INTENTION OF RESTRICTING IRAQI OFFICIALS' TRAVEL IF IRAQ PREVENTS ACCESS TO SITES AND INDIVIDUALS BY UN SPECIAL COMMISSION The Security Council this afternoon expressed its firm intention to restrict the travel of Iraqi officials if the United Nations Special Commission reports that it is not allowed unrestricted access to sites and individuals designated by it as necessary to its investigations in Iraq. The Council would also act if the Executive Chairman does not advise it by April 1998 that Iraq is allowing such access, as demanded by resolution 1115 (1997). According to the resolution -- which was adopted under Chapter VII of the Charter -- those restrictions would oblige all States to prevent the entry into or transit through their territories of all Iraqi officials and members of the Iraqi armed forces who were responsible for or participated in instances of non-compliance with relevant Council resolutions. That action was taken by the Council's adoption of resolution 1134 (1997), by a vote of 10 in favour to none against, with 5 abstentions (China, Egypt, France, Kenya, Russian Federation). (...)

The full text of press releases from October 1995 onwards is available from the UN News Centre.

Since 1994, resolutions of the Security Council are first compiled annually in a press release which gives access (in unofficial form) to the full text as well as the voting record of all resolutions adopted within the year. A subject index facilitates access to the resolutions contained in the press release compilation.

Example:

Excerpts from press release SC/6469 containing (in unofficial form) the full text and the voting record of resolutions adopted by the Security Council in 1997

(...) S/RES/1134 Intention to restrict Iraqi officials' travel if UN Special Commission denied access Date: 23 October 1997 Meeting: 3826 Vote: 10-0-5 (...) Vote on resolution 1134: In favour: Chile, Costa Rica, Guinea-Bissau, Japan, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Sweden, United Kingdom and United States. Against: None. Abstaining: China, Egypt, France, Kenya, Russian Federation. (...)

While press releases provide quick access to voting information, their unofficial character should always be kept in mind. Researchers wishing to consult voting information in an official format need to consult the meeting records of the Security Council.

Example:

Excerpts from the official record of the 3826th meeting of the Security Council, Thursday, 23 October 1997, 4 p.m. (S/PV.3826)

(...) The President (interpretation from Spanish): I shall now put to the vote the draft resolution contained in document S/1997/816. A vote was taken by show of hands. In favour: Chile, Costa Rica, Guinea-Bissau, Japan, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Sweden, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America Against: None Abstaining: China, Egypt, France, Kenya, Russian Federation The President (interpretation from Spanish): The result of the voting is as follows: 10 votes in favour, none against and 5 abstentions. The draft resolution has been adopted as resolution 1134 (1997). I shall now call on those members of the Council who wish to make statements following the voting. (...)

Statements made and actions taken during Council meetings are documented as verbatim records, identified by the suffix "/PV." within the document symbol. Further information about meeting records of the Security Council (including the full text as of 1994) is made available in this guide. UNBISnet and the Official Document System of the United Nations (ODS) provide links to the same material and, additionally, to a number of earlier meeting records.

Official voting information can also be found in the annual cumulations of the resolutions of the Security Council.

Example:

Excerpts from Resolutions and Decisions adopted by the Security Council, 1997 (S/INF/53, SCOR, 52nd year)

Resolution 1134 (1997) of 23 October 1997 The Security Council, Recalling (...) 10. Decides to remain seized of the matter. Adopted at the 3826th meeting by 10 votes to none, with 5 abstentions (China, Egypt, France, Kenya and Russian Federation)

Since 1976 a voting chart, published in the Index to Proceedings of the Security Council, gives researchers an overview of the votes taken during a given year. The information provided is extracted from the meeting records, i. e., the official source for voting information. The following notations are used to present the data:

• Y voted Yes
• N voted No
• A Abstained
• NP Not Participating
  
  

UNBISnet, the Dag Hammarskjöld Library's online index to United Nations documentation, includes a database called Voting Records, which gives access to the voting information for Security Council resolutions beginning with the 1st year (1946). The database can be searched by keyword or by resolution symbol. The information contained in it originates from the official source, the meeting record.

The database uses the following notations to present the voting information:

• P Permanent Member of the Council
• R Rotating Member of the Council
• Y Yes vote
• N No vote
• A Abstention

Example:

Excerpts from the voting record for Security Council resolution 1134 (1997) as contained in the voting records database included in UNBISnet
UN Resolution Symbol:	S/RES/1134(1997)
Meeting Symbol:	S/PV.3826
Title:	Security Council resolution 1134 (1997) [on Iraq's continued refusal to allow access to sites designated by the UN Special Commission]
Voting Summary:	Yes: 010, No: 000, Abstentions: 005, Non-Voting: 000, Total voting membership: 015
Vote Date:	19971023
Detailed Voting:	R Y CHILE
	P A CHINA
	R Y COSTA RICA
	R A EGYPT
	P A FRANCE
	R Y GUINEA-BISSAU
	R Y JAPAN
	R A KENIA
	R Y POLAND
	R Y PORTUGAL
	R Y REPUBLIC OF KOREA
	P A RUSSIAN FEDERATION
	R Y SWEDEN
	P Y UNITED KINGDOM
	P Y UNITED STATES

An official United Nations veto list, covering 1946 to April 2004, is accessible in document A/58/47. Subsequent vetoes can be tracked by consulting the listing of Security Council actions made available in this guide. This list includes links to the full text of vetoed draft resolutions and the corresponding meeting records.

Parallel to the adopted resolutions, press releases and meeting records are also sources that can be consulted for research on this topic. The press release covering a Council meeting at which a draft resolution was vetoed furnishes a first (unofficial) account of the action immediately after the conclusion of the meeting.

Example:

Excerpts from press release SC/6345 providing an unofficial summary of the 3756th meeting of the Security Council on 21 March 1997 at which draft resolution S/1997/241 was not adopted due to the negative vote of a permament member of the Council

SECURITY COUNCIL AGAIN FAILS TO ADOPT RESOLUTION ON ISRAELI SETTLEMENT Vote is 13-1-1, with United States Opposed; Would Have Demanded Halt to Construction at Jabal Abu Ghneim Due to a negative vote by a permanent member, the United States, the Security Council this evening for the second time in two weeks failed to adopt a draft resolution on the Israeli construction of a new housing settlement in the Jabal Abu Ghneim area of East Jerusalem. The draft text, which would have demanded Israel's immediate cessation of construction of the East Jerusalem settlement, received 13 votes in favour to 1 against (United States), with 1 abstention (Costa Rica). (...)

The corresponding meeting record provides the official account of what happened at a particular meeting.

Example:

Excerpts from the official record of the 3756th meeting of the Security Council, Friday, 21 March 1997, 6 p.m. (S/PV.3756)

(...) The President: I shall now put to the vote the draft resolution in document S/1997/241. A vote was taken by show of hands. In favour: Chile, China, Egypt, France, Guinea-Bissau, Japan, Kenya, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Sweden, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Against: United States of America Abstaining: Costa Rica The President: The result of the voting is as follows: 13 votes in favour, one against and one abstaining. The draft resolution has not been adopted, owing to the negative vote of a permanent member of the Council. I shall now call on those members of the Council who wish to make statements following the voting. (...)

Prepared and maintained by the Department of Public Information (DPI), Dag Hammarskjöld Library (DHL) . Comments as well as suggestions for further additions/enhancements may be directed to the Dag Hammarskjöld Library.