VOTING IN BRITAIN

Dominion, Volume 36, Issue 310, 25 September 1943, Page 7

VOTING IN BRITAIN

(By Telesrrii till —Press Ar-sr l — Copyright.) (Special Correspondent.) LONDON, September 23. Counting of the votes cast in the general election by New Zealanders in Britain is now in progress at New Zealand House. Voting ends at 5 p.in. on September 24. and the results will he cabled to Wellington, where they should he received on Saturday morning. It is likely that some further votes may reach New Zealand House by post- on Saturday. They will also be cabled, but there are not expected to be many. It must be admitted that there has been fairly widespread lack of interest in the election by members of the forces, a large number of whom are known not to have voted, one estimate being nearly half of those whose names appeared on the list compiled by the returning officer. There are apparently several reasons for this, one being that many men in the forces have been away from New Zealand for two or three years and have either lost interest in home politics or do not know personally the candidates in their districts. Thus one member of the R.N.Z.A.F. said: “I am not interested iu party polities, hut I like to know the candidates. I vote for the man and not the party, and ns I do not know any of the candidates in my electorate I am not voting." Another airman said lie did not know the party policies when voting took place at his station. These policies subsequently reached the station in pamphlet form, but he still seemed disinclined to vote. At another station every New Zealander voted except one, and he was on leave, but stated he would vote. Quite a large number of New Zealanders on leave voted at New Zealand House, Whatever number of votes is cast, it must be said that every step was taken to see that New Zealanders throughout Britain were informed of the election and what to do to vote.