LABOUR BACK IN OFFICE

Press, Volume LXXX, Issue 24269, 29 May 1944, Page 4

LABOUR BACK IN OFFICE

NEW SOUTH WALES ELECTIONS PREVIOUS MAJORITY RETAINED (Rec. 8 p.m.) SYDNEY, May 28. The McKell Labour Government was returned to office at the New South Wales State elections yesterday. While the counting of the votes has not yet been completed, indications are that there will be few changes in the new State Legislative Assembly. The Government will probably hold 56 seats, giving it a majority of 22, the same as in the last Parliament. In many seats Labour members who won by narrow margins in 1941 have increased their majorities. The most significant development was the strengthening of the Lang Labour group by the addition of a new woman member, Mrs Lilian Fowler. She defeated the former Labour Speaker (Mr F. Burke) in the Sydney electorate cf Newtown. She was. once Mr Burke’s secretary. Mr J. T. Lang was the only member of his party in the last State Parliament. The official Labour attempt to defeat Mr Lang in the Auburn electorate in Sydney was doomed to failure. Official Labour, however, is certain to win at least one seat from the Democratic Party. As the United Australia Party the Democrats were the official Opposition in the last State Parliament. With the assistance of the Independents they may now be replaced in that role by the Country Party. The new Liberal Democratic Party, a breakaway group of the Democratic Parly, polled badly and failed to win a single seat. Many of the party’s candidates will lose their, deposits. The probable state of the parties in the new Parliament, with the number of seats in the last Parliament in parentheses, is:—Official Labour Party, 56 <s6>; Lang Labour, 2 (1); Democratic Party, 12 (14): Liberal Democratic Party, 0 (0); Country Party, 11 (10): Independents, 9 (9); Communiists. 0 (0). The election results exceeded Labour's most optimistic forecast and are described by the Premier (Mr W. J. McKell) as “eminently satisfactory,” However, the “Sunday Telegraph,” in a leading article, says that official Labour cannot take full credit for the victory. Disputes between the leaders of the non-Labour parties considerably strengthened Labour’s position. “Yesterday’s State vote-Hike the Federal vote last AufU?t~-shows that the United Australia' Party under whatever name it affects is politically dead,” says the paper. “This is bad for the State, Any Government must suffer without the corrective of a progressive and virile Opposition. We have not got one in New South Wales.”