At the end of September, Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato announced that the Japanese cabinet had scheduled an extraordinary parliamentary session for October 4 to elect a new prime minister.
Incumbent Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga announced in early September his decision not to run for the head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which means his resignation as head of government as well.
Suga has spent just 384 days in office.
Kyodo reported on Monday morning that Kishida, 64, will be elected premier by parliament when it convenes for an extraordinary session in the afternoon. In the new cabinet, Toshimitsu Motegi is set to be retained as foreign minister while Shunichi Suzuki will be tapped as finance minister and Hirokazu Matsuno - as chief Cabinet secretary, Kyodo said.
Kyodo reported that Kishida's first business in office will be that of implementing measures to prevent a new COVID-19 outbreak, as the island nation has recently been undergoing a decline in cases.
Citing sources, the outlet further detailed that Kishida intends to later dissolve the House of Representatives on October 14 and hold election on November 7.