Celia Hammond has been preselected as the Liberal candidate for the Federal seat of Curtin.

The lawyer and former University of Notre Dame vice chancellor received 51 votes ahead of resources executive Anna Dartnell, who got 28 votes.

Erin Watson-Lynn, Karen Caddy and Andres Timmermani received one vote each.

Ms Hammond, 50, said she was “humbled and delighted” to have been preselected for the seat of Curtin, following on from the “inestimable” Julie Bishop.

She said she would have to wait for State council endorsement on Wednesday.

“Assuming it is endorsed, I look forward to getting out and working for the people in the seat of Curtin,” she said.

She said the main reason she decided to go into politics was to continue to serve.

“I have a lot to give,” she said.

Joining her after the five hour selectors’ meeting was her husband Simon and three sons, Sam, 16, Josh, 15 and Tom, 13.

Asked what her children thought about their mum going into politics, Ms Hammond said:

‘They love their mum and they support their mum what she wants to do, and serve.”

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.

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 was the first woman to hold the seat of Curtin.

Ms Bishop announced her retirement from politics on February 24, saying she would step down at the federal election.

With AAP