The Victorian Liberals have selected Melbourne's deputy lord mayor to replace disendorsed MP Moira Deeming as a leading upper house candidate.
Barrister Roshena Campbell was picked to top the Liberal ticket in the Western Metropolitan region for the November state election by the party's state executive on Thursday night.
She beat out sitting Liberal MP Trung Luu, who will have to reapply for second position on the ballot.
Ms Campbell is deputy to Melbourne Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece and ran as the Liberal candidate for the 2023 federal Aston by-election, losing to Labor's Mary Doyle.
It marked the first time in more than 100 years that a government has won a seat from the opposition at a by-election.
The contest for top spot on the Western Metropolitan ticket was reopened after the Liberal state executive unanimously revoked Mrs Deeming's candidacy on July 18 when she declined to apologise over unsubstantiated claims of violence against former leader Matthew Guy.
The first-term MP accused Mr Guy of grabbing her ''violently'' in a headlock at a community event in May, but later claimed she misunderstood the meaning of "headlock''.
Mr Guy told reporters in June that Mrs Deeming owed him a public apology, vehemently denying anything untoward took place.
A police investigation concluded no offence was detected at the event.
Mrs Deeming has since moved to cross bench and is yet to indicate whether she will run as a candidate in November.
Her husband took to social media on Thursday night to slam the party's decision to select Ms Campbell.
"More contempt by the Liberal Party for the voters of the west with non-western suburbs resident Roshena Campbell 'winning' the western metro Liberal preselection," Andrew Deeming wrote on X.
Ms Campbell would have to step down from council if elected to parliament, which is almost assured.
In a statement, the mother of four spruiked up her ties to Melbourne's west, saying her parents lived in Point Cook and she had spent many years volunteering at a Footscray soup kitchen.
"Residents of the west are hardworking families from all backgrounds, and they have been let down by a bad government," Ms Campbell said.
