Cryptic crossword clue
There’s little shopping to do for the final candidates 5,4

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 plus 4 letter word SHORT LIST

I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
S
H
O
R
T
L
I
S
T

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The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

What does SHORT LIST mean?

SHORT LIST noun
  1. A list of candidates selected from a longer list, and from which one or more successful candidates are in turn selected.
SHORT LIST verb
  1. To place something on a short list

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