RESULTS IN DOUBT

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 3, 29 September 1943, Page 4

RESULTS IN DOUBT

Outstanding Votes Yet

To Be Counted CLOSE CONTEST IN OAMARU Returns From Overseas Small preliminary count returns from isolated voters serving overseas with the armed forces are still arriving by cable, and though they have necessitated amendments to the figures for most of the electorates none of them have resulted in any material change, even in the doubtful cases where there are relatively few votes separating the two leading candidates. Additional odd returns of this nature can be expected from out-of-the-way places where (New Zealanders are stationed, but the number of votes involved is likely to Ibe so small that their influence on the present figures can be regarded as negligible. With absent, postal and seamen’s votes yet to be counted, however, the result is still in doubt in several electorates and must remain so till the completion of the official count. The closest contest is that in Oamaru, where the National . Party candidate, Jlr. T. R. Beatty, with 4602 votes, has maintained his lead of four votes over the Minister of Health, Hon. A. H. Nordmeyer. Additional supplementary votes received yesterday from overseas resulted in each candidate receivim; one more vote, so that the pre-vious-night’s margin was unchanged. Outstanding votes for Oamaru, however, total 84S, and the result must necessarily be uncertain till they are counted. Situation in Otaki. A further improvement occurred yesterday in the position of Mr. L. G. Lowry, Labour candidate for Otaki. In a telegram received at Levin by the returning officer for the electorate, Mr. Lowry’s figures for one of the booths were given as 103. whereas they should have been 163. This extra 60 votes and supplementary service votes from .ibroad have now brought his majority up to l-o-For this electorate there are nearly 1000 outstanding votes. The numbers of absent, postal, and seamen’s votes available for ihe electorates where the result is in doubt, together with the leading candidate’s majority, are as follows: —

H tCrg.- 4-> O = 2 % C w g fl 5 r? O fl w eft o o a o o o iZi> Eden 101 064 279 13 Otaki 123 009 330 New Plymouth .. 3S 639 369 404 1 4 W a iVa r i pa”/.... S3 -*3S S2 0 AVaiteinata 1-1 —33 Marlborough ... 351 40421 IIS 365 36 Palmerston North 352 6S3 3SG 0 Latest figures for the doubtful electorates are as follows. — EDEN. Anderton, 5\ . P. (L.) 6036 0553 Fortune, M. H» (A.) ■>•... • •••• HAMILTON. Findlay, F. (N.) GSG5 6022 Jtsarrcii, c. a. v-*-'-/ MARLBOROUGH.’ 5317 Meachen, E. 1. (L.) 4006 blianu, i. x. MASTERTON. Mackley, G. (N.) •• 4612 4196 motueka. 3950 Haldane, J. R. (N.) 3721 NELSON. 5478 Huggins, F. AV. (N.) 5291 NEW PLYMOUTH. 6056 Frost, F. L. (L.) 001S 0 AMARU. Beatty, T. R. (N.) • 4002 N'ordnicycr, A. H. (L.) 4jJa5 OTAHUHU. 57S2 Hamilton, G. G. (N.) • 5419 OTAKI. 40S3 PALMERSTON NORTH. 0674 Mansford, A. E. (I.) 0322 RAGLAN. Ooulter, R. (L.) 4427 Glasgow, R. J. (N.) 4370 WAIRARAPA. 4392 Maher, J. j.'(N.) 43C‘i) WAITEMATA. Mnrtnn IT T (N 1 6463 Drearer, Mrs. M, M. 1L.) 0342