The lawmaker who will succeed Junichiro Koizumi will be picked in the Diet on Sept. 22 following the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election slated two days earlier, government sources said Friday.
The lawmakers will vote at the outset of an extraordinary session to be convened Sept. 22 and the new prime minister will launch a Cabinet the same day, the sources said.
Koizumi and Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe, the front-runner in the race to become the next prime minister, agreed to the schedule Thursday, the sources said.
As the LDP and its coalition partner, New Komeito, control both houses in the Diet, the newly elected LDP president will be the next leader of Japan.
The upcoming session is expected to run for 70 to 80 days for debates on many contentious issues, according to the sources.