If it's a government job, and a good panel they will judge solely on the application and interview. It's not always the acting incumbent who gets the job if the fail to demonstrate in these two opportunities they have the skills to do the job.

Government jobs can also form an order of merit - a list of people who were also found suitable for the job and can be contacted within a set timeframe if the person who they select now moves leaves the job, gets promoted etc. That way they don't need to go through the whole exercise again, but they do not have to use the merit list either.