THE WESTRALIAN ELECTIONS.

Evening Star, Issue 14688, 4 October 1911, Page 6

THE WESTRALIAN ELECTIONS.

UNDER PEEFERE2JTIAL VOTING. Press Affioocation—By Telegraph—Copyright. "piBTH, October 3. The pdling for 25 out of 50 seats in the Assembly took place today. In 10 other electorates the Labor candidates were returned unopposed, and in the remaining four the elections hare been deferred until the 11th imsb. _ Preferential voting is being irk'd, for the first time. The- general issue'is Labor versus Government. The chief planks in the Labor platform are the stoppage of land; alienation and ultimate land nationalisation, the abolition of the ,State Governor and the Legislative Council,, imposition of a Land Tax without any exemptions, the stoppage of borrowing excepting for public works, which, must pay interest and sinking fund charges. The Ministerial programme includes a freehold land system, the substitution of Income for Land Tax, for development works, and a vigorous immigration policy. The polls closed at 7 p.m., but the) returns are too incomplete to show the state of parties. [There are 50 electorates in. the State, each returning a single member. The real fight was between the Government and the Labor pa-i-tv, who were in opposition in the last Parliament. In even' feat but one Labor put up % candidate, and only one or two Independent Labor men. stood. On the other hand, in more tlian one instance several Liberal;-, put up for the same seat; It was expected that several Labor men would lie elected unepposd. Labor had to put up with a great disadvantage, created by the recent cutting up of electorates, but the party expected to he returned with a majority in the new House. In tire last Parliament there were 22 Labor members and 28 anti-labor. .U was expected that Labor would gam from six to nine seats, and that there would be another Labor Government in Australia. In 1905 Western Australia had 22 Labor mem-br-ih in the Assembly and two in the Council. The figures were the same before the p; escnt election.]

A LABOR, VICTORY.

FOUR MINISTERS DEFEATED,

PERTH. October 4 (Received October 4. at 9.65 a.ra.)

A complete Labor victory is indicated. Tho latest figures point to the defeat cf the Hon, ll.“Oregon-, (Minister of Alines and Railways). Hon. H. Dalglish (Minister of 'Works),'Hon. J. Mitchell (Minister of Hands), and 11k- Hon. J. L. Nansen (Ai-tomev-General).