She would do a darn sight better than the favourite for deputy, who reminds me of a Girl Guide, NSW MP Sussan Ley, but Archer's likely new margin in Bass will be paper-thin again.

Parties don't like potential leaders who hold ultra-marginal seats, but if Archer aims high she might snare a junior shadow ministry.

Firstly she has to get past Peter Dutton, as the Coalition sleepwalks its way into a very odd choice for the new leadership, because he's a conservative attack-dog and she's a moderate.

They call them "wets" in the Liberal Party, versus the right wing "dries", who even give the church a bad name because of their conservatism.

Archer is a former mayor of a dysfunctional council.

She would be battle hardened; a street fighter with oodles of experience.

She played Labor cleverly by tackling Labor-like progressive issues and owning them, giving Ross Hart nowhere to go.

In effect she was a Liberal, running a Teal independent campaign.

I'm sure a federal integrity authority and support for the transgender community regarding women's sport are issues she's passionate about.

They just happened to be issues her opponent would have liked to champion.

To survive the first term she had to dig out a niche in Bass, to become a de facto independent rather than just another foot soldier, and that's precisely what she did.

I tried to encourage former Bass Liberal MHR Andrew Nikolic to go rogue at times and carve out a niche but I guess his military discipline wouldn't allow it.

You might initially win Bass with a good campaign and a swing with the incoming government, but holding onto the seat next time is much harder.

Former Franklin Liberal MHR Bruce Goodluck pioneered the value of major party independency - going rogue.

Former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser used the old Apple Isle tag to call him a grub.

The grub attack mapped out the Goodluck dynasty.

Other rogue-like disciples include Labor Lyons MHR Dick Adams and Franklin Labor MP Harry Quick.

Clark independent MP and former army intelligence spook Andrew Wilkie owns his electorate in the Goodluck tradition because he's a rogue MP with a fiery approach to politics, a la Jacqui Lambie.

When she's standing, I'll forever vote one Jacqui Lambie on my Senate ballot paper.

She works hard.

She's an angry, rough diamond with plenty of life experience.

She's also fabulously inspiring to watch when she's tearing strips off the establishment in her Senate speeches.

So you can see the common thread.

Voters won't tolerate time-servers, and grovelling cannon fodder.

They want representatives in Parliament, serving their constituencies rather than themselves.

The moment Scott Morrison and his Treasurer Josh Frydenberg bullied Archer over her rebellion I knew she had Bass in the bag.

Bass voters may not agree with everything she does or says, but they like a firebrand, independent, individual with animal instincts.

Bass is a graveyard for loyal followers.

Unless you're stand outs, like deputy prime minister Lance Barnard in the Whitlam government, or senior minister Kevin Newman in the Fraser government you can't afford to keep quiet in Bass and just follow orders.

After his blunders in the Aged Care portfolio I doubt Richard Colbeck will get a guernsey in the new shadow cabinet, and with Eric Abetz gone, all Archer has to contend with are Senators Jonathon Duniam and Wendy Askew.

They're quality senators but they're inside the tent.

If he becomes leader Dutton may decide that having Archer inside the tent is better than her rebellion outside.

As well, it might be worth Dutton considering that Tasmania was alone among the state and territories to enjoy a swing towards the Liberals, as opposed to the carnage in other states.

If the state Liberals make it three seats, with Susie Bower an outside chance of taking Lyons, the party would be justified in claiming two jobs, in the shadow ministry or maybe a party-whip position.

So it might seem overly ambitious for Bridget Archer to be flaunting her credentials before all the votes are counted, but I say go ahead and have a dip.

Even if she gets nothing in the depleted Opposition spoils she is telegraphing her ambition.

Holding Bass is a triumph for Archer and her campaign team, against a backdrop of the interstate Liberal carnage, with voters waiting with baseball bats to get rid of Scomo and many of his colleagues.

The Archer team shone like a beacon for Liberal voters, while an incompetent party machine came up with primary school-level gems, like: "It won't be easy under Albanese."

Who on earth came up with that lame, schoolyard jingle?

Whoever did should never be allowed within a mile of any future campaign.