Reform UK councillors have nominated acting Leicestershire County Council leader Kevin Crook as their candidate to take on the role in the long term.
Crook took on the role temporarily when former council leader Dan Harrison resigned after comments he made about staff redundancies that were leaked online.
A new long-term leader will be elected in a vote at a full council meeting on 2 December.
Crook was elected as the new leader of the council's ruling Reform group on Tuesday, and will be the party's candidate in the full council leadership vote.
Crook said he was delighted to have been unanimously elected as group leader.
He said he hoped he would be able to continue to lead the authority's Reform minority administration but would need other parties not to oppose his nomination.
The council has 23 Reform councillors, 15 Conservatives, 11 Liberal Democrat members, three Labour councillors, one Green Party, one Restore Britain member as well as an independent.
If a candidate from another party is nominated and wins, Reform would lose control of the council.
Crook said he accepted Reform did not command a majority in the chamber, but he believed it still had a mandate to rule as the single largest party.
"I do honestly believe all the members in the chamber respect democracy," he said.
"Democratically speaking, we are the largest group within the council and by rights the largest group should be the administration.
"Most of the members, apart from a few who have political ambitions, but most of them do believe that in their hearts."
He added: "I'd like to thank my [Reform] colleagues for entrusting me with their total support.
"It's humbling to receive the support from every member.
"There's much to be getting on with, but I'm looking forward to the future and leading this Reform administration from the front."
'Division and chaos'
The leader of the council's Liberal Democrat group, Michael Mullaney, told the BBC he would not support either a Reform or Conservative leadership candidate in the upcoming vote.
When asked how Conservative councillors will vote, group leader Deborah Taylor said: "We'll just have to wait and see what happens on the day."
Labour group leader Jewel Miah said: "We won't be supporting Reform. They have had 18 months at County Hall to prove themselves and instead we are seeing division and chaos.
"My view is that services are getting worse not better. They never had a mandate and now they have fewer councillors than they did when they formed their administration.
"I don't see how they can argue they have the right to carry on."
Crook said: "I have got a job ahead of me to bring the [Reform] group together - not that there's chaos or division to the extent the Tories are trying to portray on social media. A lot of that is nonsense."
Crook also distanced himself from the comments made by Harrison, which led to him becoming acting leader.
Harrison quit after being recorded saying 76 council solicitors would be made redundant, branding them "incompetent", before saying "what I want to look at now is the women", in remarks which were then released on social media.
"Dan's apologised and I've offered my apology as well. The officers at County Hall do a remarkable job.
"I have the utmost respect for them," he added.
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