PARTY VOTING

Ellesmere Guardian, Volume 65, Issue 99, 17 December 1943, Page 1

PARTY VOTING

GAINS AND I.OSSES

A GENERAL ELECTION

ANALYSIS

Although the Labour Party obtained substantial aggregate majorities over the National Party in all types of electorate in 1938, an analysis of the final figures for the recent general election shows that aggregate majorities in the four main cities and larger provincial towns have been considerably reduced and that the National Party polled a majority in the rural areas, reports the Auckland Herald.

Accurate comparison is not possible owing to the fact that both parties nominated differing numbers of candidates in 1938 and 1943, but the returns disclose -^that Labour polled fewer votes in each of the three types of electorate this year compared with 1938. In the rural areas, where the reduction in votes was particularly marked, there is a slight compensation that the party's candidates numbered one fewer this year. In the Maori electorates only, did Labour improve its vote.

Advance by Nationalists On the other hand, the National Party made a fairly big advance in the four main cities and larger provincial towns, although part of the city advance was due to the inclusion iof two more candidates. Its rural vote, however, was slightly smaller, but two _ fewer candidates were nominated for these seats compared with 1938. The party also sufI fered a small loss in Maori support. j Gains and losses by the two parj ties compared with their respective 1938 totals are given in the following table. Figures in parentheses indicate variation in the total number of candidates nominated this year ■as against 1938. The provincial centres comprise Hamilton, GisJ borne, Napier, Hastings, New Plymouth, Wanganui, Palmerston l North, Nelson, Timaru and Invercarigill:—

Seats Labour National Cities -32,358 +27,138 (+2) Provincial centres -10,340 +3,850 Rural, mcl. Maoris -38,085 (-1) -2.492 (-2) Rural, excl. Maoris -40,144 (-1) -2,415 (-2) Maori +2,059 .77 Total Votes Compare^ Total votes obtained by the two parties in the different groups" of electorates in 1938 and 1943, together with the respective aggregate majorities of each party are given in the following tables. The number of candidates nominated ton each occasion is given in parentheses:—

MAIN CITIES 1938 1943 Labour 252,372 (28) 220,014 (28) National 132,976 (26) 160,114 (28) Majority for Lab. 119,396 59,900 PROVINCIAL CENTRES Labour 70,620 (9) 60,280 (9) National 52,472 (10) 56,322 (10) Majority for Lab. 18,148 3,958 RURAL ELECTORATES (including Maoris) Labour 205,298 (41) 167,213 (40) National 195,633 (41) 193,141 (39) Majority for Lab. 9,665 Majority for Nat. — 25,928 RURAL ELECTORATES (excluding Maoris) Labour 190,405 (37) 150,261 (36) National 187,263 (37) 184,848 (35) Majority for Lab. 3,142 Majority for Nat. .— 34,587 MAORI ELECTORATES Labour 14,893 (4) 16,952 (4) National 8,370 (4) 8,293 (4)

Majority " for Lab. 6;523 ' 8,859 In two rural electorates, Awarua and Mataura, National Party members were returned unopposed.

In the past two years. up to March, 1943, the R.A.F. in all theatres of war had sunk ,or seriously damaged 1,250,000 tons pf enemy shipping.