The election of Dr Abiy, a member of the Oromo Peoples Democratic Organisation (OPDO), sets on the path to succeeding Mr Hailemariam Desalegn as prime minister.
The ruling Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) has elected Dr Abiy Ahmed as it's new chairman.
The election of Dr Abiy, a member of the Oromo Peoples Democratic Organisation (OPDO), sets on the path to succeeding Mr Hailemariam Desalegn as prime minister.
The 180 member EPRDF council voted at around mid night on Tuesday to give Dr Abiy the new role.
EPRDF has 45 senior leaders from each of the four member parties.
All previous chairmen of EPRDF have proceeded to become prime minister after approval by parliament.
Several people on social media congratulated EPRDF for electing Dr Abiy.
The development is expected to ease the political tensions in the Oromia Region, which forced the government to declare a state of emergency after Mr Hailemariam announced his resignation.
However, pundits predict a difficult time for Dr Abiy as it will take a lot of effort and compromises to build national consensus among the disparate political groups, founded mostly along ethnic lines.
