Just hours after a short list surfaced for the co-host’s spot alongside Chris Cuomo on CNN’s new morning show, as we reported earlier today, the network announced who got the job.

The co-host will be Kate Bolduan, who had emerged as a front-runner. Still, the Los Angeles Times reports that the selection was a surprise.

“As expected, former ABC News correspondent Chris Cuomo is to host,” the Times reports. “The surprise is who is joining him. His co-host is to be Kate Bolduan, a CNN congressional correspondent and a co-anchor of ‘The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer.’ There had been speculation about Erin Burnett moving from evenings to mornings, but that switch proved to be [a] hard sell with her.

The name and launch date for the new show remain unknown, although the show is expected to launch later this spring.

“Joining the new show as its news anchor is Michaela Pereira, who is known to Los Angeles viewers from her hosting duties on KTLA’s morning show,” the report adds.

The show is expected to fill the 6-9 a.m ET block or the 7-9 a.m. ET block.

“Overhauling the morning is a big priority for new CNN President Jeff Zucker, who first rose to prominence as an executive producer of NBC’s ‘Today,’" the story reports. “Fox News Channel’s ‘Fox and Friends’ and MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe’ both beat CNN in the mornings.

Said Zucker: “We believe there is an opening to do news in the morning with a fresh, new voice.”

The Times piece adds: “Behind the scenes, two veterans of ABC’s ‘Good Morning America’ will run the show. Jim Murphy, a veteran broadcast news executive, has been tapped as CNN’s senior executive producer with oversight over … its entire morning lineup. Matt Frucci, who joined CNN last year as a program development executive and previously produced the weekend edition of ‘Good Morning America,’ will be the show’s executive producer.”

Kate Bolduan