Kishida to be elected as next Japanese PM, form Cabinet

TOKYO - Fumio Kishida, president of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), is expected to be elected as the new prime minister in a special Diet session on Monday and form a new Cabinet to tackle COVID-19 and a battered economy.

As the ruling coalition led by the LDP, which chose Kishida as its new leader last week, controls both chambers, the 64-year-old is expected to be elected premier by the parliament in an extraordinary session on Monday afternoon.

"This is the real starting point. I will go forth with a strong sense of determination, with a strong resolution," he said at the LDP's headquarters in Tokyo in the morning.

In the special Diet session to be convened at around 1:00 p.m. local time, Kishida is expected to secure a majority of the votes of the House of Representatives and go on to win most votes in the House of Councillors.

After naming his new Cabinet in the afternoon, Kishida will be formally inaugurated in a ceremony at the Imperial Palace and hold a press conference in the evening.

Kishida's first major test as prime minister will be the general election. According to local media reports, Kishida plans to dissolve the House of Representatives on Oct. 14 and hold the vote on Nov. 7.

Kishida's predecessor Yoshihide Suga's Cabinet resigned en masse on Monday morning, little more than a year after its formation, amid criticism over its lack of ability to curb COVID-19.