Labour set to win by slim margin

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33539, 21 May 1974, Page 1

Labour set to win by slim margin

(NZ Press Association—Copyright!

CANBERRA, May 20.

Labour now needs to win only two more seats to remain the Federal Government in Australia. Counting today shows that it will probably win three of the doubtful seats.

It could also win a fourth doubtful seat, for an over-all majority in the new House of Representatives of five. This is now considered to be the likeliest result.

At inis stage, ivir wnitiam s Government can count on 62 members in the new House, two short of a bare majority. Political observers in Canberra say that the Government is hopeful of a small majority but it is not prepared to say it is certain to be returned. The Liberal Party is not prepared to concede defeat. Counting of Senate votes is still in the early stages, but computer forecasts indicate either an equal division or a 29-31 result either way. Mr Whitlam said the 128 Labour candidates had won as many votes as the other 374 candidates combined. - He pointed out that at present electorates in country areas contain as few as 50,000 voters, while some city electorates have 80,000. His party has pledged to equalise the size of electorates, although its proposal to base electorates on population rather than the number of registered voters was rejected in one of the four referenda held in conjunction with Saturday’s polls. The other three referenda for constitutional change were also rejected, according to figures so far available. The Immigration Minister (Mr Al Grassby), who is in

danger of losing his seat (Riverina, N.S.W.) said today

| that his wife, Elinor, hai 'collapsed after receiving . death threat over the tele phone. Mr Grassby said that hn wife might have to be admit ted to hospital. He said that her collapst followed threatening letters and telephone calls over the last 18 months, and libellous and personal accusations distributed in pamphlets around his electorate. The police are investigating his allegations. The Government’s fate could be decided by postal votes and the votes of 20,000 Australians overseas. More than 100,000 postal votes have yet to be counted, and there is a danger that many of these votes could arrive after the 10-day time limit and be declared invalid. It coujd be two weeks before the final results are known. The chief electoral officer (Mr Frank Ley) said today that the counting could take as long as this, taking into account postal votes and the distribution of preferences.

The Government is expec-' ted to retain Eden-Monaroj in New South Wales and Leichhardt in Queensland, i 11 and to win Stirling in WestJern Australia from the .( Liberal Party which would i give it 65 seats and a J majority of three. I If Labour also wins Benjdigo from the Liberals, the [majority will be five, and if n retains Dawson in Queensland the majority will be seven. Labour’s majority in the) 125-seat House before the double dissolution was nine. Three seats about which j there has been some doubt] are considered likely to go to the Liberal and Country Par-1 ties. They are Parramatta,; Paterson and Hume, all in New South Wales. This would make thej< strength of the Opposition < parties 57. j If the Liberal and Country , Parties also win Diamond < Valley in Victoria, Riverina j in New South Wales and j Lilley in Queensland, they will have 60 seats. < If Bendigo and Dawson go s to the coalition parties, their t [strength in the new Houses will be 62. (