The Canterbury Seats

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22534, 17 October 1938, Page 10

The Canterbury Seats

Two. perhaps even three, of the Canterbury seats cannot yet positively be considered as won or lost; but' if it is assumed that the results reached on the first count are sustained, then the changes in the province will be Labour’s loss of Mid-Canterbury and Waitaki to the Nationalist Party and the Nationalist loss oi Riccarton to Labour. It is sufficient to say, in the meantime, that Mr Grigg’s first political campaign, against a member who had given very constant and diligent service to his electorate, was a most meritorious one, which fully earned success; that Mr Kidd’s fight in Waitaki was another hard, fair, and close one. which promises the National Party a valuable addition to its strength; and that the member for Riccarton, if he is displaced, will'have been beaten only by an uncommonly heavy concentration of the Labour Party’s force against him. The electorate will have lost an active and able representative, and his party will have lost, from its Parliamentary ranks, a loyal servant and strong champion.

The remaining seats, in which the results all clearly show the return of the former representatives, require little' comment. In the city Mr Howard, Mr Armstrong, and Mr Sullivan all easily outdistanced their opponents, and must be congratulated upon successes which are personal as well as party triumphs. Their opponents, fighting forlorn hopes, deserve the praise of those who fight such campaigns with ali the energy and conviction that hope is generally needed to inspire. In Christchurch North, Mr Holland’s win, an exceedingly important one for the National Party, emerged from what must have been very nearly the most strenuous personal campaign and contest in the whole election; and the credit of his success measures the-credit which belongs to his opponent in defeat. The detailed figures for the Lyttelton constituency show where the voting strength of Mr McCombs is mainly gathered and how great a problem is-set for any opponent. His defeat of Mr Wilson by nearly 3000 votes, in spite of Mr Wilson’s strenuous and capable efforts, is less surprising than Mr Morgan Williams’s defeat of Mr Warren by 1350 in Kaiapoi. Here the Labour vote increased by 26 per cent., and Mr Warren’s increase of the National vote by almost 40 per cent. was. though remarkable, insufficient. In Hurunui Mr Forbes and in Temuka Mr Burnett scored clear-cut and expected successes; but in Hurunui the Labour vote rose by 23 per cent. Mr Carr’s victory for Labour in Tirparu was obtained with only a very slightly increased vote; and it must be regarded as one of the electoral disappointments of the National Party that its vote in this constituency fell considerably.

It is of some interest to set out a few com-

parative figures. Over the 12 Canterbury electorates the Labour Party vote increased by about 9900, or 14.25 per cent.; the National Party vote by about-6700. or 13.2 per cent. For a rough comparison, .the Wellington city, vote showed an increase of 13,300, or 27 per cent., for Labour, and of 6150, or 22 per cent., for the National Party.