Anthony Albanese is set to become the new Labor leader, but the race to be his deputy is hotting up.
Shadow finance minister Jim Chalmers pulled out of the contest to replace Bill Shorten on Thursday, paving the way for Mr Albanese to take the top job.
Mr Chalmers said he carefully considered running on a platform of generational change.
'But in the end I couldn't be assured of winning,' Mr Chalmers said in a statement on Thursday.
'And if I did win, the extra responsibilities of leadership would make it much harder to do my bit at home while the youngest of our three little kids is only five months old.'
Although Mr Chalmers has pulled out of the leadership contest, he has been floated as a possible candidate for the role of Deputy Leader.
Labor MP Anthony Albanese (pictured) is set to become the new Labor leader, but the race to be his deputy is hotting up
Shadow finance minister and Queensland MP Jim Chalmers pulled out of the contest to replace Bill Shorten on Thursday, paving the way for Mr Albanese to take up the plum role
Tanya Plibersek is the current deputy, and has held onto the position since 2013.
While Labor aims to have a man and a woman in the leadership duo, a political twist means Ms Plibersek is unlikely to remain in the role.
The Labor leader often chooses a member who is loyal to the opposing faction within the party in order to avoid infighting.
As Ms Plibersek belongs to the left faction, she was found to be the right fit during Opposition leader Bill Shorten's tenancy, as he belongs to the right.
The new likely leader Mr Albanese hails from the left and would likely set his sights on a party member associated with the right, leaving the position vacant for politicians like Mr Chalmers.
Mr Chalmers sat as treasurer between 2010 to 2013 and acted as chief of staff to Wayne Swan.
He has been the Member for Rankin in Queensland since 2013 and said he will throw his full support behind Mr Albanese.
'I will enthusiastically support him and work tirelessly with our team to give Australians the Labor government they need and deserve at the next opportunity,' Mr Chalmers said on Thursday.
Victorian Labor right-faction MPs Richard Marles and Clare O'Neil are both considering standing for deputy leader.
Ms O'Neil expressed her interest in the the vacancy on Wednesday night.
'Many Labor people - particularly Labor women - have contacted me in recent days encouraging me to run for Labor deputy leader to ensure there is a woman in the leader/deputy team,' Ms O'Neil tweeted.
'One of the best things about Labor is that
