U.S. President Donald Trump has been nominated again for the Nobel Peace Prize.
On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed Trump that he had recommended him for the esteemed award, presenting the American leader with the letter he claimed to have sent to the Nobel committee.
Trump has received nominations several times from individuals within the U.S. and international politicians, yet these are merely initial steps in the confidential process.
Trump’s previous nominations
Among Trump’s nominators are a group of U.S. House Republicans and two lawmakers from Norway. These groups independently put forward his nomination in 2018 for his role in reducing nuclear tensions with North Korea. Additionally, one Norwegian nominated him again for the 2021 prize due to his efforts in the Middle East, echoed by a Swedish lawmaker.
Not all of the nominations have been valid: The Norwegian Nobel Committee, which selects the prize winners, said in 2018 that someone using a stolen identity had nominated Trump at least twice.
Nominations can be made by a select group of people and organizations, including heads of state or politicians serving at a national level, university professors, directors of foreign policy institutes, past Nobel Prize recipients and members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee itself.
Secret process
Once all nominations have come in, the committee — made up of five members appointed by the Norwegian parliament — sifts through them and ensures they were made by an eligible nominator.
A person cannot nominate themselves, according to the committee.
The nominations aren’t announced by the committee, and the Nobel statutes prohibit the judges from discussing their deliberations for 50 years. But those doing the nominating may choose to make their recommendations public.
Nominations must be submitted before Feb. 1 each year — meaning any recent Netanyahu nomination would be for the 2026 prize. The winners are announced every October, with award ceremonies taking place on Dec. 10, the anniversary of Nobel’s death.
The prizes in medicine, physics, chemistry, literature and peace were established by the will of Alfred Nobel, a wealthy Swedish industrialist and the inventor of dynamite. An economics prize was later established by Sweden’s central bank and is presented at the same time.
How to win the peace prize
According to Nobel’s wishes, the peace prize should go to “the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses.”
The peace prize committee is the only one that regularly rewards achievements made in the previous year — and the prize is the only one awarded in Oslo, Norway. For the science-related prizes, scientists often have to wait decades to have their work recognized by the Nobel judges, who want to make sure that any breakthrough stands the test of time, in Stockholm.
Former U.S. President Barack Obama won the peace prize in 2009, barely nine months into his first term. It was met with fierce criticism in the U.S., where many argued Obama had not been in office long enough to have an impact worthy of the Nobel.
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter won a Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for work he did after leaving the White House.
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