LABOUR’S STRENTH GROWING.

Grey River Argus, 28 June 1922, Page 6

LABOUR’S STRENTH GROWING.

Lhc new Labour 51. P., slr Munro goes to Parliament with 45 per cent, oi the voters at his back, and the “Otag( Daily Times’’ thinks his party ough to feel uncomfortable. Did the lie formers manifest any discomfort at last general election when the returns exhibited the following array of Re form minority members each one oi whom received less than the 45 pel cent of support of the voters will' which Mr slunro is twitted.

1 lie array is rather startling, and a, perusal of the “ Giuzetted ’ ’ election re-; turns, where the percentages are all nicely worked out by the Government Statistician, might have saved he “Otago Daily Times” the error of supposing that the archaic electoral system its party stands for has perpetrated an injustice for the first tune in its long and bad career. But, if the Dunedin journal 1 . ip really convinced that there is mischief in vote-splitting and that the “first past the post sys- ; tern’’ ought to be reformed, it need make no very deep researches to dis- 1 cover that there is a system in operation in some other countries which works honestly and equitably. Its own columns are full just now of the results of the Irish elections, conducted under the system of proportional representation, an especially fortunate circumstance, since we know that under such a system the return of candidates exactly reflects public opinion. Under the hit or miss blundering of ‘‘first past the post’’ it would have been possible for the great Irish majority which supports the Treaty to be under-repre-sented, or even outnumbered in the Bar liarnont. There is also the result of the Tasmanian elections, conducted under the Hare-Clark system of the single transferable vote —not the best possible system according to modern electoral science, but still quite accurate in comparison with the method imposed on this country by reactionaries. In Tasmania there were ?.O members to be elected. Non-Labour candidiate polled 42,000 votes and Labour candidates polled 25,854. On a strict division this would entitle Non-Labour to 18.56 scats , and Labour to 11.-14 seats. Anyway’, as 1 the “Lyttelton Times” remarks) the | Tories at Dunedin got a taste of their j own tnedieine. The Liberals got a . taste of their fate.

Reform Elect orate Percent ng member of votes. Sy kes Masterton 34.59 Jones Kaiapoi 38.1. -Hamler Marsden 30'24 -Malcolm Clutha 39.51 Bitchcner Waitaki 4(£51 -Mackenzie Auek. E. 41.16 Campbell ■ Hawke’s Bav 41.99 -M ’Nicol Pahiatua 42.56 J.uko W ’gton N. 43.10 Newman AV ’gton E. 43.18 Hudson Alotueka 44.60 \\ right \V ’gton Sub. 44.S2