"THE ABSOLUTE MAJORITY."

Evening Post, Volume LXVIII, Issue 99, 24 October 1904, Page 2

"THE ABSOLUTE MAJORITY."

ADDRESS BY MR. M'NAB. An address was delivered on Saturday evening in tho Victoria Hall, Newtown, by Mr. R. M'Nab, M.H.R. for Mataura, on the subject of the "absolute majority" system of voting, which he has been advocaiing in the House. Dr. Fmdlay occupied the chair, and the attendance — probably on account of Saturday not being • a popular night for lectures — was v nob large. The lecturer, in the first place, showed that under the present system of voting, where more than two candidates presented themselves, especially where all were popular men, the successful candidate was usually returned by a minority of the electorate. He gave an actual example which occurred eight years ago in his own district. There were five candidates, and the vote stood : A 820, B 655, C 645, D 510, E 500. A (Gilfedder), with "a majority of 165" was returned. In this case, the two candidates highest on the poll together did nob receive a majority of the. votes polled, for they received 1475 Votes against 1655 for C, D, and E, whose s-pporters, for any influence they exerted on the result, might as well have stayed at home ; and there was the more serious anomaly that A was returned by 820 voters, though 2310, or a majority of 1490, struck his name off their voting papers. In 1899 fourteen members, representing ten constituencies, were returned by a minority of the electors ; in 1902 seventeen constituencies were so represented, and over thirteen thousand voters who went to the poll were in effect disfranchised. To meeb this difficulty the Government proposed a second election, to which there were many objections. There was the delay, the great unnecessary expense, the facb that — as shown at by-elections or where an elec■tion was voided by petition — voters would nob trouble to record their votes as at a general election; and the proposal was unscientific ; for in such a case as he had cited, the two highesb on the poll mighb together represent only a minority. His suggestion was that blanks should be left opposite each name in the ballot-paper, bke voter indicating his choice by the figure 1, and other names by 2, 3, etc., in case his own candidate failed to secure a majority of votes polled. The voter need not mark more than 1 unless he chohe; bub in that case if his candidate was defeated he would have no influence on the result as affecting the remaining candidate. A model ballot-paper on bins principle was handed round, containing the names of five ex-Premiers, and an experimental vote was taken, resulting thus: — Fipst count: Fox, 22; Sbafford, 12 ; Waterhouse, 9 ; Weld, 5 ; Whitaker, 3. The total poll being 51, or more than bwice 22, a second counb became necessary. Fox again headed the list, bub still short of the quobum, so a third countthat of the "Weld" papers — was made, showing 26, the required "absolute majority" for Fox. There were no informal papers — a proof, the lecturer said, of the simplicity of the plan ; and the experiment had shown how what was really three separate elections had taken place on one set of ballot-papers, with no more additional trouble than a partial recount. Some people, Mr. M'Nab said, confounded the absolute minority method with the Hare system, though its intention and effect were precisely opposite.' The Hare system was designed to secure representation of minorities ; the absolute system to make such representation impossible. It was in force in Queensland with satisfactory results-^one of its pffeebs being a notable falling-off in the number of candidates. The proceedings closed with a vote of thanks to the lecturer.