UPS AND DOWNS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 138, 13 June 1932, Page 7

UPS AND DOWNS.

CANDIDATES' FATE.

Wholesale Decimation of Lang

Strongholds.

EX-MINISTERS DEFEATED,

(United P.A.—Electric Telegraph—Copyright) (Received 10 a.m.) SYDNEY, this day. Some of the metropolitan scats won by Labour at the last election by narroAV margins have been retrieved by United candidates with substantial majorities. The Bondi scat is a case in point. There Mr. Norman Thomas (Umted) has an absolute majority of 4347 over the retiring Lang member, Mr. A. Landa.

Another instance is North Sydney, where Mr. H. L. Primrose, Mayor of the municipality (United), ousted the Lang member, Mr. ii. Howe, by nearly 2000 votes. The Drumiiioyiie seat has been won back by Mr. J. R. Leo (United) from the Lang member, Mr. D. McClcllanci. The George'* River scat has been recovered from Labour by Mr. C. O. J. Monro (United) by over 2000. Randwjck, where the contest hold a lot of interest, has reverted to the Uliitcds, whose nominee, Mr. A. H. Moverly, practically an unknown man, defeated the Lang member, Mr. J. Flanagan, by 780. Ryde has given the Uniteds another seal. Their candidate, Mr. E. K. Spooner, also is a new man in politics. He triumphed over the retiring Lang member, Mr. E. A. Davics, by 4443, witli the preference votes stiil undistributed. A similar position occurred at Waverley, Concord and Hurstville, where the retiring Labour members appeared to be unbeatable. The defeat at Kogarah of Mr. M. Gosling, formerly Chief Secretary in the Lang Ministry, who reintroduced tin hares and fruit machines, was not generally anticipated and haj created considerable comment. His chief opponent, Mr. J. C. Ross (United), has a present lead of 134(5, and when the preference votes for the Federal Labour candidate (Mr. P. J. Coylej are distributed it is expected that Mr. Gosling will go down by over 2000. " Utter Rout of Labour " in Country. The result at Petersham, where the ex-Attorney-General in the Lanj; Cabinet, Mr. J. Liuuaro, is well behind his nearest opponent, Mr. E. S. Solomon (United) has created surprise in Labour circles.

Mr. Lamaro was believed to be one of the strong men in Mr. Lang's team. He played rather an unpopular part after the Governor's dismissal of Mr. Lang, and by his adverse comment on judicial decisions incurred the displeasure of the legal fraternity.

The story concerning the country electorates can be summed up in the words: "Utter rout of Labour." Quite a number of Labour tnen who enjoyed personal popularity and ordinarily would have been difficult to unseat paid the penalty of their support of Langiem, so-called, and the spoils of victory have gone to the Uniteds as their leaders prognosticated.

The Country party, which was given rather an open field, has profited to the extent of nine seats and only two remain in doubt. One of these is Bathurst, where the sitting Lang member, Mr. C. A. Kelly, is having a very close contest with the Unity party candidate, Mr. G. Wilkins, with the odds in favour of the latter. Bathurst is a large railwaymen's centre.

The Maitland seat, hitherto a Labour stronghold, has been lost by the Lang member, Mr. W. F. O'Hearn. The adjoining seat, Upper Hunter, has been wrested from Labour in a most decisive manner.