⁍ The World Trade Organization’s bid to select a new leader was plunged into uncertainty on Wednesday after the United States rejected the Nigerian woman proposed as the global trade watchdog’s next director-general.

---

⁍ Just six days before the U.S. election in which trade is a hot topic, Washington struck another blow at the WTO.

---

⁍ The WTO itself has called a meeting for Nov. 9, less than a week after the election, by which time it hopes to have secured full backing for Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

---

– The US has rejected Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as the next director-general of the World Trade Organization, the BBC reports. Okonjo-Iweala, a former World Bank managing director, was the only candidate left in the race to replace Roberto Azevedo, who stepped down from the post in August. According to Reuters, the US was the only country not to support Okonjo-Iweala during the four-month selection process. The US Trade Representative’s office released a statement Wednesday saying Okonjo-Iweala didn’t have the “technical expertise” to lead the WTO. The statement was likely a dig at Okonjo-Iweala, who critics say doesn’t have “real, hands-on experience in the field.” A spokesperson for Okonjo-Iweala says she is “immensely humbled” by the support she received during the selection process. The WTO has called a meeting for Nov. 9, less than a week after the US election. If the appointment is blocked by a majority of WTO members, Okonjo-Iweala will have to step down.