The Hawera Star. FRIDAY, JANUARY 11, 1929. ENGLISH GENERAL ELECTION.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 11 January 1929, Page 4

The Hawera Star.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 11, 1929. ENGLISH GENERAL ELECTION.

Delivered every evening by 6 o'clock m Hawera, Manaia. Normanby. Okaiawa. Eltbam, Mangatolci, Kaponga, Alton, Hurleyville, Patea. Waverley. Mokoia. Whakamara, Oliangai, Meremere. Fraser Eoad, and Ararata.

Rather striking gains «by the British Labour Party in the recent local bodies elections are variously interpreted. A melt increase of 190 seats was secured by thei Labour Party in the municipal contests in England and Wales. The Conservatives lost 180 seats, and the Liberals and Independents approximately maintained their position. ' Twentyseven municipalities are now under the control of the Labour Pairty. What do these results presage for the general election, which will come some time this 1 year? The Labour Party naturally is confident. It hopeis that the momentum responsible for the municipal success will last until the parliamentary elections. To an extent, this vidw is justified, for some of the gains registered iby the Labour Party recently were in areas which hitherto, either in local or parliamentary contests, have been. a barren field for Labour propaganda. The Conservative and Labour Parties naturally argue that local elections have no connection with parliamentary elections. The percentage of nonvoting was large. In London the abstentions were 65 per cent., as compared with 5S per cent, in local' elections of 1925, and only 20 to 25 per cent, in the last general elections. Tho indifference of the electorate plus the indifference of the Conservative Party organisations can be considered as increasing the number of seats which the Labour Party gained. Whatever the true meaning of these local results, however, it cannot serve to justify any forecast concerning the outcome of the next general election'. The by-elections, of which there have been more than fifty during the last four years, show that tho Conservative Party has lost ground and that the Labour Party has gained. In one or two of these elections a few months ago the Liberal Party achieved astonishing success. Much is being said of the unknown' factor of how the women between the age§ of twenty-one and thirty - , admitted to the suffrage for .the first time, will cast their ballots. Probably they will divide in much the same wary as have women above thirty, atad as have 1 the men. Barring some issue like (prohibition, with a particularly feminine appeal, experience seems to 1 show that there is mo distinctive women’s vote. What happens in the British election, therefore:, will depend very largely on electoral strategy oris- 1 I iag out of ai triangular contest. It is this which has had its' effect in the, byelections and has kept them from being more (unfavourable to: the fives. At the general election in 1923, for example, there were 252 constituencies with more than twoi candidates'. In all but forty-five of these constitu,cnees the winning candidate failed to receive a majority of the vote. If the aihti-Labohr vote is divided between Liberals and Conservatives, a minority Labour candidate may win. If the antiConservative vote is divided between Labour and Liberals, a minority Conservative candidate may win. Much tlie 1 most important problem, therefore, ’is respect of the next British election, is the number of three-cornered contests. Will the Labour Party and the Liberals be ready to reach any accommodation in respect of the constituencies that they will leave to each other? Matters like these are far more significant than any temporary drift which may be shown by tho results of municipal electionsl where local issues and local personalities may be the deciding factors.