Election analyst Dr Kevin Bonham said Ms Whelan was "a long shot" while ABC election analyst Antony Green said she could only win if Liberals handed out how-to-vote cards for her.

After announcing Ms Whelan had quit for alleged racist and sexist comments on Facebook, the Liberal Party urged Lyons voters to support the National's Deanna Hutchinson but to vote Liberal in the Senate.

Sitting Labor member Brian Mitchell said there was no doubt Ms Whelan was still in the race.

"I've got to keep working hard," he said.

"It's not over.

"She stays on the ballot paper and I can't take it for granted.

"In 1996 John Howard dis-endorsed Pauline Hanson as the Liberal candidate and she was elected as an independent."

Mr Green described Ms Whelan as "a wild card".

"She could win but it will be a tougher task," he said.

"Her chances depend on the publicity she gets and who helps her hand out how to vote cards.

"It is another distraction for the Liberal Party."

Dr Bonham said it would be a "surprise" if Ms Whelan won Lyons which Labor holds by a four per cent margin.

"Labor will be fighting for the seat and won't be taking it for granted," he said.

Ms Whelan, who told of death threats against her and her children, said she had worked too hard to give it all away.

"I have been receiving threats to the level I could never have imagined," she said.

"Phone calls, voicemails, messages and emails have made those close to me startled and afraid.

"I have put in so much effort and I now feel free of the Liberals to defend myself.

"I wasn't allowed to speak out before.I didn't get to speak a word when I was with the Prime Minister."

Read more about Jessica Whelan's fall from Liberal Party candidate:

Ms Whelan rejected suggestions she could repeat what Ms Hanson did after being disendorsed by the Liberals for her anti-Asian and anti-Aboriginal comments.

Ms Hanson went on to win the seat but sat as an Independent.

"I don't want people to refer to me as a Pauline Hanson," she said.

"We are very different people.

"We live in a multicultural society and I love that about Australia."

Ms Whelan said she had contacted a lawyer about the Facebook posts and strenuously denied making anti-Muslim comments which she described as "vile".

She believes her prospects for winning Lyons are good despite the negative attention she has received.

"If I'm elected there's a good chance I will work with the Liberal Party," she said.

"I resigned because I knew I had to for the party but I can now defend myself."

Ms Whelan also said she stood by her comments that Youth Allowance payments should be looked at with a view to increasing it.

It is a big blow for Prime Minister Scott Morrison who was in northern Tasmania with Ms Whelan on Thursday and said her comments had been referred to the Australian Federal Police for investigation.

Mr Morrison said on Friday that her comments did not reflect the Liberal Party's views.

"Her views were her views and they do not represent the views of the party I lead," he said in Melbourne on Friday.

Tasmanian Liberal Senator Jonathon Duniam urged Lyons voters to support the National's candidate now Ms Whelan has resigned but also described Ms Whelan as a "great candidate in many ways".

He defended the party for not taking action on the alleged comments earlier but agreed that vetting of candidates needed to be improved.

"As soon as we became aware of issues, action was taken," Senator Duniam repeatedly told reporters.

"Now we are moving forward."

Ms Whelan, who was elected to the Brighton Council last October, could face a code of conduct inquiry for her alleged anti-Muslim comments.

Mayor Tony Foster said the general manager would examine the matter

"No-one has complained to me about her," Councillor Foster said.

"I'm aware of her appetite for social media but I wouldn't know what she says.

"She hasn't put a foot wrong as a councillor.

"Local government is about the community and I would have thought she would want to get a few runs on the board before she stood for federal politics."

Premier Will Hodgman and Senator Duniam agreed that the party's vetting of candidates needed to be improved.

They also defended the party's Tasmanian director Sam McQuestin.

"I think the right thing has been done by the candidate," Mr Hodgman said.

"All parties have a responsibility to vet candidates, to screen them as best we can.

"It's obviously a lot more of a challenge these days with social media."

Mr Mitchell said had not concentrated on Ms Whelan's comments.

"Her comments were appalling but I'm focussed on serving the community," he said.

"I'm getting on with the job."

Federal Labor MP for Franklin Julie Collins said Mr Morrison should have sacked Ms Whelan on Thursday.

"This has been a test of the Prime Minister's leadership and he failed," she said.

"She should have been sacked on Thursday.

"It was very clear that these posts were racist,

"They have not referred it to the police."

The Australian Electoral Commission advised that under the Electoral Act, no changes could be made to the list of candidates after the close of nominations.

"If, after the close of nominations, a candidate resigns from their political party or is disendorsed by their political party, the candidate's name will remain on the ballot paper, along with the name of the political party that endorsed their nomination," the Commission said on its website.