Controversial Liberal MP Bronwyn Bishop plans to contest the next federal election, but it is not yet clear if fellow party elders Bill Heffernan and Philip Ruddock will seek to remain in the Parliament beyond 2016.
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And as pre-selections formally opened in 16 Liberal-held NSW seats on Tuesday, a spokesman for Tony Abbott said the former prime minister was still considering his future.
A deadline of February 19 has now been set for Mr Abbott and other Liberal MPs, when nominations close, to take a decision on his next move in politics after spending time over summer considering his future.
Amid talk of an attempted purge of conservative Liberals by the party moderates and a push for generational change, Mrs Bishop, Mr Heffernan and Mr Ruddock are just three of the MPs who could find themselves facing challenges.
Fellow Liberals Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, Craig Kelly and Angus Taylor are also said to be facing possible challenges, though Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has made clear his support for sitting members.
A spokesman for Mrs Bishop told Fairfax Media on Tuesday that the 73-year-old former speaker, who resigned in disgrace last year over her lavish spending on charter helicopter flights, would contest her seat again.
The 72-year-old Mr Ruddock, who is said to be facing a challenge from his own former staffer, Julian Leeser, said he had not yet decided whether to contest the next election.
"At this stage I am still of the view that I will continue in public life if I can make a difference. I have always had that view, I don't have a right to be in Parliament, no one does," he said.
"Obviously, at the time when I take a decision in relation to these matters I take into account the views of my family, local party members and my colleagues."
Some NSW Liberals contacted by Fairfax Media believe that Mr Leeser now has the numbers to roll Mr Ruddock, but others believe the veteran MP and former cabinet minister would prevail in a contested ballot and are annoyed with what is seen as disrespectful public destabilisation by Mr Leeser's supporters of the incumbent.
"If he [Leeser] nominates, he will win," said one NSW Liberal, "and as for Bronwyn, no one will lift a finger to help her".
Fairfax Media was unable to reach the 72-year-old Senator Heffernan for comment, but it is understood that if the veteran senator stands aside, a former staffer of his, Hollie Hughes - who plans to nominate - will be well placed to claim his senate post.
Senator Fierravanti-Wells said that Mr Turnbull had made it "very clear" that stability in NSW was important heading into the 2016 election.
"The PM had indicated his support for sitting members," she said, adding that if she faced a challenge for her senate spot, she would stand on her record.
"WhatI've been doing as assistant minister for multi-cultural affairs, what I'm doing is important, it's topical, at a time when Australia and the rest of the world are facing challenging issues. I do things in government that other people don't."
Another Liberal MP from NSW said the newly-ascendant Left's attempt to purge some conservatives from the Parliament was a "real test for Malcolm Turnbull".
"He has said he is backing the incumbents, we will see if he lives up to that promise."
with Matthew Knott
