Common Model UN Motions, Their Purpose, and When a Delegate Raises Each One

MUN motions are the procedural levers that let a delegate steer committee time. Without them, the chair sets every agenda, every speaking turn, and every vote. A delegate who knows motions controls the pace. A delegate who does not spends the entire session waiting for the floor. The same motion name can mean different things depending on whether you sit in a THIMUN committee or a Harvard-style committee. This guide lists every common MUN motion, states the rule for raising it, and gives the exact moment you should use it to advance your objectives.

Twelve motions appear in nearly every committee room across both procedural families. A few more appear only in one. The difference between a motion that passes and one the chair rules dilatory is often a single missing word in how you phrase it.

Motion To Open Debate (Harvard-Style)

This is the first motion of committee. It requires a second, is not debatable, and passes by simple majority. Raise it immediately after roll call. The motion is pro forma in most committees, the chair expects it, but a delegate who sits silent on this loses the first chance to be recognised. Failure case: a delegate who does not raise this motion cedes the floor to whoever does, and that delegate controls which topic is discussed first in a multi-agenda committee.

Motion To Set The Agenda (Harvard-Style)

Used when a committee has more than one topic. Requires a second, simple majority, not debatable. Raise this to choose which topic comes first. The choice determines which research you need ready. If your position paper covers Topic A and the committee votes Topic B first, your prepared material is useless for the first four hours. Raise this motion early, with a second lined up from your bloc.

Motion For A Moderated Caucus (Harvard-Style)

The most-used motion in Harvard-style committees. Requires a purpose, total time, and individual speaking time. Simple majority, not debatable. Raise this to focus debate on a specific sub-topic, for example, “motion for a moderated caucus on refugee repatriation, 15 minutes, 45 seconds per speaker.” The purpose clause is mandatory: a motion without it is ruled dilatory. The chair can deny the motion if it duplicates a previous caucus or strays outside committee mandate. Failure case: a delegate who raises a motion with a purpose the chair considers already covered wastes a motion and loses credibility.

Motion For An Unmoderated Caucus (Harvard-Style)

Suspends formal debate so delegates move freely. Requires total time only. Simple majority, not debatable. Raise this when you need to negotiate bloc positions, draft resolution clauses, or recruit signatories. The motion is the primary tool for coalition-building under time pressure. A delegate who never raises an unmoderated caucus is negotiating alone and will be excluded from resolution authorship.

Motion To Introduce A Draft Resolution (Harvard-Style)

Central to Harvard-style procedure, where multiple resolutions compete. Requires a second, simple majority, not debatable. Raise this only after the drafting group has approved the resolution for formal introduction. The chair reads the resolution aloud or distributes it. This motion is structurally absent in THIMUN procedure, where a single merged resolution is built during lobbying before formal debate begins. A delegate never introduces a resolution from the floor because the resolution already exists when debate starts.

Motion To Close Debate (Both Styles)

Ends formal debate on a resolution or topic and moves the committee to voting. Requires a second, two-thirds majority, not debatable in Harvard-style. In THIMUN procedure it is called “Motion to Move to the Previous Question,” is debatable (two speakers for, two against), and requires simple majority. Raise this motion only when your bloc has enough votes to pass the resolution and further debate risks amendments that weaken the text. Raising it too early, before undecided delegates have committed, guarantees the motion fails and wastes political capital.

Motion To Table (Both Styles)

Postpones debate on a resolution or topic indefinitely. Requires a second, two-thirds majority, and in most rules is debatable with two speakers for and two against. Raise this when a resolution your bloc opposes is gaining momentum and you need to kill it without an outright vote. Tabling is a procedural weapon, not a delay tactic. Failure case: a delegate who moves to table a resolution their own bloc supports has sabotaged their own position.

Motion To Adjourn (Both Styles)

Ends the committee session. Requires a second, simple majority, not debatable in most rules. Raise this only when committee time has expired or when a session is clearly unproductive. Raising it before the scheduled end of session without chair agreement is often ruled dilatory.

Motion To Suspend The Meeting (Harvard-Style)

Temporary break, for lunch, a caucus break, or a crisis update. Requires a second, simple majority, not debatable. Raise this when you need time to negotiate outside the formal room or when a crisis update has just been delivered and the committee needs to respond.

Motion For A Roll Call Vote (Harvard-Style)

Records each delegation’s vote individually during substantive voting. Requires a second, simple majority, not debatable. Raise this when you want to know exactly where each delegation stands, useful during a close vote or when building a record for awards. A roll call takes substantially longer than a placard vote, so using it without a strategic reason loses committee time.

Motion To Divide The Question (Both Styles)

Splits a resolution into separate clauses for individual voting. Requires a second, simple majority to vote on division, then a substantive vote on each part. Raise this when a resolution you support overall has one clause you oppose, allowing you to vote for the rest. The motion is powerful but rare in THIMUN committees because single-merged resolutions discourage piecemeal voting.

A motion fails before it is heard if the phrasing is wrong. Every motion follows the same structure in Harvard-style: stand when no one is speaking, raise your placard, say “Motion to [action]” followed by the specific parameters. For a moderated caucus: “Motion for a moderated caucus on the role of NGOs in implementation, 10 minutes, 30 seconds per speaker.” The purpose clause is mandatory. Without it, the chair rules the motion dilatory and you lose the floor.

THIMUN procedure uses the same basic structure but calls motions by different names. “Motion to Move to the Previous Question” replaces “Motion to Close Debate.” “Motion to Divide the House” replaces “Motion for a Roll Call Vote.” The phrasing difference is small, but a delegate who uses Harvard-style language in a THIMUN committee confuses the chair and wastes their turn.

A second is required for most substantive motions, motions that change the state of debate, but not for points of order or parliamentary inquiry. The second must come from a different delegation. A delegate who raises a motion and has no second lined up has wasted their motion and looks disorganised. The work of securing a second happens in the unmoderated caucus before the motion is raised, not after.

Objections matter. In THIMUN procedure, any delegation may object to a motion by stating “Objection.” The chair then either rules the motion out of order or puts it to a vote. An objection without a reason is still valid. A delegate who objects to a motion their own bloc supports has betrayed the coalition, and the bloc will remember it during the awards discussion.

The motion for a moderated caucus is the single most important motion in Harvard-style procedure. It is the motion a delegate uses most of the time they raise their placard. A committee that never votes on a moderated caucus motion is a committee stuck on the speakers list, where each delegate speaks once every two hours and the debate never narrows. A delegate who masters this motion controls the agenda within the agenda.

Raise it when the speakers list is producing general statements and no delegate is addressing the specific sub-topic your bloc needs to advance. The purpose clause, “on the role of regional organisations in peacekeeping”, forces the committee to discuss exactly that. The total time and individual speaking time let you calculate how many delegates will speak: a 15-minute caucus with 30-second speaking time allows 30 speakers, which is nearly every delegate in a 40-person committee. A 10-minute caucus with 60-second speaking time allows 10 speakers, which favours delegates with prepared remarks.

The difference between Harvard-style and THIMUN-style on this motion is structural: THIMUN does not use moderated caucuses at all. THIMUN debate is continuous, with delegates speaking from the floor in order of recognition, not in timed caucus blocks. A delegate moving from THIMUN to Harvard-style who never raises a moderated caucus motion will speak once every 90 minutes while Harvard-trained delegates speak four times per hour. The procedural freeze is real and expensive.

Failure case: a delegate who raises a moderated caucus on a purpose that has already been thoroughly discussed is ruled dilatory by the chair and loses the floor. Watch the debate direction. Do not repeat what the room has already decided.

The clearest way to see how motions differ between the two systems is to follow the sequence from opening to voting.

Harvard-Style Sequence

Motion to Open Debate, Motion to Set Agenda (if multiple topics), Motion to Open Speakers List, Motion for Moderated Caucus (repeated as needed), Motion for Unmoderated Caucus (for resolution drafting), Motion to Introduce Draft Resolution, Motion to Close Debate, vote. Each of these motions requires a second. Each is a separate decision by the committee. A delegate who misses the moment for any of them loses an opportunity to steer the room.

THIMUN Sequence

The sequence is compressed. Lobbying precedes formal debate, so the first motion of committee is usually a substantive motion on the resolution itself. There is no motion to open debate because debate is already open. There is no motion to introduce a resolution because the resolution exists from lobbying. The first motion a THIMUN delegate commonly raises is Motion to Move to the Previous Question, which ends debate and moves to voting. The committee votes on the single merged resolution, then adjourns. The entire procedural arc is shorter, but the pre-debate lobbying phase is longer and more socially demanding.

Worked Example: Harvard-Style

A delegate on a committee with two topics arrives with research on Topic A. They raise Motion to Set Agenda to put Topic A first. They second themselves by having a bloc member ready to second. The motion passes. They then raise Motion for Moderated Caucus on the sub-topic that favours their country’s policy. They use an unmoderated caucus to join a drafting bloc. They become a signatory on a draft resolution. They raise Motion to Introduce that resolution. They raise Motion to Close Debate when the bloc has the votes. They vote yes. They used five motions across six hours of committee time. A delegate who did not raise any of them spent those six hours listening.