UNITED NATIONS, Oct 3: South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon, a front-runner in the UN Security Council’s informal polls, is poised to become the eighth secretary-general of the United Nations, diplomats here said on Monday.

Mr Ban, 62, won a fourth informal ‘straw poll’ of the 15-member UN Security Council on Monday. The result showed that none of the council’s five permanent members is likely to veto his nomination and that the post is his.

The South Korean secured 14 votes while one ‘no opinion’ ballot was cast by one of the 10 rotating members of the council.

Chinese Ambassador Wang Guangya announced that Mr Ban has emerged as the front-runner after informal consultations of the council on Monday.

“The Security Council will hold a formal vote on October 9,” US Ambassador John Bolton said. After the informal secret-ballot vote, India’s candidate, UN under secretary general for communications and public information Shashi Tharoor, who finished second to Ban, offered his warmest congratulations to the winner.

“It is clear that he (Ban) will be our next secretary general,” Tharoor said. “I wish Mr Ban every success in that task. I will strongly support him.”

The name of the winner will then be sent to the General Assembly for ratification. The body, consisting of all 192 UN members, is to declare official the winner’s election within a month. He would assume charge on January 1.