Roxon's seat for Conroy adviser

A FORMER adviser to Stephen Conroy is the frontrunner to win preselection to replace ex-attorney-general Nicola Roxon in Gellibrand.

A FORMER adviser to Communications Minister Stephen Conroy is the frontrunner to win preselection to replace former attorney-general Nicola Roxon in the ultra-safe Labor seat of Gellibrand.

Tim Watts, a Telstra executive, does not live in the western Melbourne electorate, Labor's second-safest seat, which has been held by the party since its creation in 1949.

Ms Roxon, 45, who resigned from cabinet last month, is not recontesting the seat she has held since 1998.

Mr Watts, 31, is regarded as one of the party's brightest young thinkers and has won the crucial right-wing factional backing of Senator Conroy.

"I am a passionate believer in Labor's mission to expand opportunity and I want to make a contribution to continuing that mission," Mr Watts told The Weekend Australian.

But he recognises that Labor faces an uphill battle to win the September 14 election. "The next election is going to be a very hard fight for Labor," he said.

"As a party we must remain united and focused on the issues that are relevant to the everyday lives of voters.

"Labor must stay positive and maintain its reforming energy to win the electorate's support."

A former solicitor with degrees from Monash and Bond universities and the London School of Economics, Mr Watts also worked as an adviser to former Victorian premier John Brumby.

He has been a manager for Telstra since mid-2009, working in corporate and regulatory affairs, including overseeing Telstra's deal with NBN Co.