Celia Hammond has been named the Liberal Party's next woman to take over the safest blue-ribbon seat in Western Australia from former foreign minister Julie Bishop.
The former University of Notre Dame vice-chancellor has been pre-selected at a meeting on Sunday as the candidate for Curtin to fill the seat Ms Bishop held for two decades.
Ms Hammond won the vote ahead of four other candidates; foreign affairs specialist Erin Watson-Lynn, resources executive Anna Dartnell, and local councillors Karen Caddy and Andres Timmermanis.
"I am humbled and delighted to have been preselected in this preselection meeting for the seat of Curtin, following on from the inestimable Julie Bishop," she told The Australian in Perth.
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Ms Hammond won 51 votes ahead of Ms Dartnell's 28 votes, and one vote was each given to the remaining candidates.
The University had put out a statement on March 6 that Ms Hammond would be leaving the instiution.
"After a remarkable 21 years at The University of Notre Dame Australia, especially the last 11 years as Vice Chancellor, Professor Celia Hammond has announced that as she wished to pursue a unique opportunity she would bring forward her leaving date to the close of business today," the statement said.
The decision will be taken to the State Council meeting on Wednesday to be ratified, a party spokesman told AAP.
Ms Hammond has big shoes to fill as Ms Bishop is more recognisable than Prime Minister Scott Morrison at 82 to 77 per cent respectively, The Australia Institute poll on Sunday reveals.
"For Julie Bishop to still be more recognised than the current Prime Minister of Australia is unprecedented," the institute's executive director Ben Oquist said.
Ms Bishop was also the first woman in the seat of Curtin and held it for two decades.
Prior to the result, Senior West Australian Liberal Linda Reynolds had refused to endorse a candidate as it was "purely and simply" for local preselectors.
"I think there's an incredibly strong field and there are four amazing women who are running for preselection," she told Sky News on Sunday ahead of the outcome.
"I know the preselectors today will choose wisely and whatever the outcome we will have a worthy successor to Julie Bishop."
Ms Bishop announced her retirement from politics on February 24, saying she would step down at the federal election.
