Four candidates are vying to represent the Liberal Party in the contest for the Seat of Paterson in the next federal election.
The party's nominations review committee recently gave the green light for Laurence Antcliff, general practitioner Owen Boyd, School Teacher and Maitland Councillor Sally Halliday and bricklayer and small business operator Assari McPhee to put themselves forward for preselection.
The party's preselection will be determined by members between September 6-8.
Former candidate Brooke Vitnell, who secured a 1.7-point swing against Labor's Meryl Swanson in 2022, ruled herself out of the contest earlier this year due to commitments associated with her young family.
Ms Vitnell has thrown her support behind Mr Antcliff, 37, the operations manager, Housing Industry Association Apprentices, NSW & QLD.
Mr Antcliff, who has been actively involved as a volunteer in recent election campaigns, is the only nominee who lives in the Paterson electorate.
A party source said Mr Antcliff's connection to the local community gave him a distinct advantage in the four-way preselection race.
"Members do not want a repeat of 2016 where the focus of the campaign was about (Liberal candidate) Karen Howard not living in the electorate," the source said.
"Laurence has the same campaign support as Vitnell did in 2022 and is the only person who is able to carry the same energy through the campaign. He is young and energetic with a great CV and gaining the support of huge swarms of local members."
Labor's hold on Paterson suffered a blow earlier this year when a electoral boundary redistribution resulted in Kurri Kurri, Abermain and Weston moving to the Hunter electorate.
Ms Swanson held the marginal seat in 2022 with a buffer of 3.3 percentage points, but losing Kurri Kurri would reduce her nominal margin to 2.6 percentage points.
The federal government's proposed Hunter Offshore Wind Project is among the issues that are likely to play a key role in determining the outcome of Paterson.
While several anti-offshore wind rallies have been held across the electorate next month's local government election is seen as the first real test of community sentiment on the issue.
