If you somehow manage to be appointed, you are set up for a decade or more in this plum job.

Canberra can expect a Melbourne Cup field to contest the new Senate vacancy created by Kate Lundy's departure at the next election, so who has the right CV for the job?

A number of high profile people are now weighing the pros and cons of throwing their hat in the ring, but the next Labor Senator representing the ACT may not be a household name.

Two reasons – you don't have to have a profile to win the seat – it is guaranteed to go to Labor – and the anointed one may be a quiet achiever within the party.

True, the party could go against form and choose a high profile candidate, say ABC newsreader Virginia Haussegger, but Lundy, the former construction worker, was not known outside the party before she was put into the Senate.

The same goes for Labor's lower house representatives, Gai Brodtmann and, to some extent, Andrew Leigh, although he was known in academic circles.

The reason Leigh won was because the Left nominated ALP official Nick Martin but, in a protest, all the other candidates preferenced Martin last, handing an unexpected victory to Leigh.

That could happen again for the Senate vacancy if the Left's candidate is not liked.

As one party insider said on Thursday, nothing will be certain in the ballot because ACT rank and file members carefully scrutinise the candidates.

Martin may return from Sydney and would certainly have a lot of support.

Katy Gallagher has a very high profile in the nation's capital and the Senate job would be hers if she wanted it – but in the unlikely event she jumped ship, Labor would face an even tougher ACT Assembly election, already problematic due to the growing concern about light rail.

And why would she want to go from the power of chief minister to become a backbencher in Opposition?

Gallagher will want the preselection process done sooner rather than later as it would be a damaging distraction during the Assembly election.

Former Chief Minister Jon Stanhope is back from his post on Christmas Island, and is looking for a job.

A Left candidate could be Dean Hall, secretary of the ACT branch of the CFMEU.

What about Nadine Flood, who runs the public sector union? Sure, she could continue to campaign against public sector cuts but Canberra's Labor members may revolt against a candidate being parachuted in.

For others in the ALP, an obvious route to a safe seat is to demonstrate your commitment by running for a difficult seat, such as ACT Assembly spots.

Of those who ran in 2012, and failed, the Right's Meegan Fitzharris did best – she almost toppled Simon Corbell.

While she doesn't have a lot of experience in politics, two other former candidates have more experience – Adina Cirson and Angie Drake.

Lundy is not anointing anyone yet while she waits for the field to assemble for the race but she wants her replacement to be a woman.

That would make the going harder for academic George Williams who would nevertheless have broad support.

Also, the Left controls the party in Canberra, as evidenced by assistant branch secretary Matt Byrne replacing outgoing branch secretary Elias Hallaj without a ballot.

Brodtmann is from the right but was active in the party for many years before winning preselection for Canberra.

All year, political observers have been waiting to see if Lundy would jump before possibly being pushed, as happened to Humphries after a decade in the job.

Lundy has been there for almost 19 years and her political career had peaked.

She was overlooked for a ministry by Kevin Rudd, even though she had been on the Opposition frontbench before the 2007 election. She became a minister when Julia Gillard took over but is now on the backbench.

It was simple logic that she would probably leave politics at the next election and she is young enough to pursue another career. And it's a smart move to do it now, at a time of her choosing.

Humphries' lifelong parliamentary pension was estimated at $80,000 a year when he left after a decade so Lundy will also be well set up.