Victorian Liberal president Greg Mirabella to step down for Senate run

The incumbent Victorian Liberal Party president has decided not to recontest that position at the organisation's annual meeting on September 23.

Instead, Mr Mirabella will seek to be the No.3 Senate candidate on the Liberal Party ticket when a preselection is held at the end of November for the next federal poll.

Current senators James Paterson and Jane Hume would be in the top two slots.

Cross bench Senator David Van, who was expelled by the Liberals for alleged sexual misconduct, would have filled the third spot if he was still in the party.

Mr Mirabella was in the senate from late 2021 for seven months after filling the vacancy created by the resignation of former Senate president Scott Ryan.

"I've got a very strong sense of unfinished business and I think I can make a serious contribution on a range of policy fronts like agriculture, water and energy," Mr Mirabella said.

He will argue that he brings a different perspective as a country resident, noting party members "loved the idea of a genuine rural senator".

Mr Mirabella's term as Victorian president coincided with the party losing last year's state election, but he rates his stint as "successful" given he entered the job when the Liberals were a "highly fractious and dysfunctional organisation".

"Yes we lost an election....but my ability to influence the election was minimal," he said citing decisions already made before he begin last year and his not being responsible for the election campaign.

Mr Mirabella said more than half the party's permanent staff had been turned over with a new state director, deputy director and head of finance along with new systems aimed at raising professionalism and expertise.

He lost his Senate seat to United Australia Party's Ralph Babet who secured the sixth and final spot.

However, Mr Mirabella said he had "never made any secret at all that I was likely to have another crack at the Senate".

Meanwhile, this weekend, Mr Mirabella will handing out how-to-vote cards when voters in the state seat of Warrandyte in Melbourne's outer northeast, participate in a by-election triggered by the resignation of MP Ryan Smith.

The Liberals have preselected former Box Hill candidate and youth pastor Nicole Ta-Ei Werner and are expected to retain the seat, with Labor opting not to run a candidate.

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