The Japan Times said the 67-year-old will announce her candidacy on June 10 after she first became Governor in 2016.

The former Defence Minister did not receive the backing of Prime Minister Shinzō Abe's Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in her first election, but it is rumoured they will back her this time around.

Koike is a member of Tomin First, a centre-right to right wing political party known for its focus on regional politics in the Tokyo area.

She has been a member since 2017 after leaving the LDP and also started a national version of Tomin First called Kibō no Tō in the same year.

It is expected that she will focus on recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the holding of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics in 2021, after the Games were postponed due to the spread of the virus.

She has been heavily involved in the planning for the Games and in March said cancelling Tokyo 2020 would be "unthinkable", before the decision to move back a year.

Last year, Koike was highly critical of the decision to move the Olympic marathons and race walking events from Tokyo to Sapporo, due to fears over heat.

Speaking to reporters today, she said: "My focus now is to take steps from the coronavirus and revitalise the economy once again."

Koike had previously caused controversy in 2017 when she said that foreign residents should not be able to vote or run in local elections, citing fears of a "power grab".

She won more than 44 per cent of the vote in her first election in front of the LDP-backed candidate Hiroya Masuda, and Democratic Party-backed candidate Shuntaro Torigoe.

So far, two candidates have announced their intention to run for election, although neither are backed by major political parties.