UNSC set to choose S Korean FM to succeed Annan

The outcome of Monday's formal vote is a foregone conclusion as Ban, who won four informal straw polls by a wide margin in the council since July, is the only remaining candidate for the coveted, high-profile diplomatic job.

His six rivals have all withdrawn from the race since Ban's decisive win in last Monday's poll, when he was backed by 14 of the 15 council members, including all five veto-wielding permanent members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.

The other contenders were Indian diplomat Shashi Tharoor, the UN undersecretary general for communications and public information; Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga; former Thai deputy prime minister Surakiart Sathirathai; Jordan's UN ambassador Prince Zeid al-Hussein; Sri Lankan diplomat Jayantha Dhanapala; and Afghanistan's former finance minister Ashraf Ghani.