FEDERAL ELECTIONS

Inangahua Times, 17 September 1934, Page 3

FEDERAL ELECTIONS

GOVERNMENT S MANDATE. BALANCE OF POWER. HELD BY COUNTRY PARTY. (United Press Assn—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright.) SYDNEY, Last Night. The Lyons Government Party today received an unequivocal mandate from the Federal electors to carry on. At the most, it may lose four seats and the Country Party also four. When the ccamting ceased early this morning, the position appeared to be as follows, the figures for the former House of Representatives being in parenthesis:— United Australia Party 34 (38), United Country Party 12 (16), Federal Labour 17 (14), State Labour 7 (5), doubtful 5, other Parties nil. There were €Vo Independents in the former House.

The Government hitherto ~ had an absolute majority over all the other Parties, with the result that it was Jiot necessary officially to coalesce With the Country’ Party. Now, however, the latter Party holds, the balance of power and interesting political developments are regarded as inevitable;

It was unofficially stated last night that the Government could count on the support of the Country Party. i A feature of the polling in New l South Wales, where's’the 5 ’the most changes occurred, is that State Labour, led hyl Mr Beasley, nearly ousted the Federal Lah our~candidates.

'All Ministers, with the possible exception of Mr A, J. Guy, the assistant Minister of Customs, whose position is doubtful, will be returned. The Prime Minister had an easy victory in Wilmot, Tasmania, his election coinciding with his fifty-fifth birthday.

The extent to which the Federal labour vote slipped in New South Wales is best indicated by the heavy primary votes recorded for Mr J. S. Garden, Secretary of the Sydney Trades Labour Council, over Mr E. C. Biley, the former at present having a PAEKHXLL ’ S HUGE MAJORITY. SYDNEY. Last Night. The Postmaster General, A. Parkhill. has a huge majority of 28,000, the Min ister of Commerce. Mr. F. H. Stewart JU2 absolute majority of 12.000. _*md Mr W. M. Hughes, an absolute majority of 4,000. These figures are typical of the strength of the United Australia Party polling in many electorates. The Country Party, however, has rot done quite so well. Reports from the smaller States indicate that there will he only trifling changes in the Party’s representation and probably will not exceed three row faces. Owing to the smallness of the returns and the large number of candidates in the field for the Senate, it will not be possible to indicate the outcome for several days. although here again the Government forces are making a strong showing.

NEW MEMBERS. [SYDNEY. Last Night. The new members so far Include the following:— Victoria:—M Blackburn. P. Prennan, 3L Drakeford (Federal Labour Members). and R. G. Menzies (United Australia). N.S.W.:—T. Mutch and W. McCall (United Australia). J. Garden and D. Mulcahy (State Labour). Queensland: —D. Watson (Federal Labour). West Australia:—J. Curtain (Federal Labour). The doubtful seats are Calare and Darling in New South Wales, the Adelaide seat in South Australia and •the Franklin and Bass seats in Tas PAPER COMMENTS. LONDON. September 15. The Observer says the swing- of the pendulum has not gone far. The Australian polling and the reduction of Lyon’s strength were less than it seemed natural to expect. The elections main significance is that tii commonwealth has vetoed thf

ambition of both Labour factions, Pederal -vrwH state, to relieve the bankers of their responsibilities. The Sunday Times expresses the opinion that with the results satisfac tory on the whole, a revival of interest in Australian stocks is assured, two to one majority. A notable victory for the United Australia Party in New South Wales relates to Mr T. D. Mutch, who de- ■ feated a strong Langite, Mr H. P. - Laxzarini, for Werriwa. In Victoria, Mr R. G. Menzies, who Will probably succeed Hon. Latham as Federal Attorney-General, obtained a Heavy majority at Kooyong, while Messrs M. Blackburn and F. Brennan retrieved Bonrke and Battman for Federal Labour. Maribyrnong rejected Mr J. E. Fenton, the veteran ex-Labour Member, who. with Mr Lyons, broke away from the Scnllin administration. Fenton having been defeated narrowly by Mr A. S. Drakeford, Federal Labour. Federal Elections Svdney. Sept 17 Additional results in all the States appear to stremgtben the position of the United Austrian Party, and

when the counting ceased to-nigh the approximate state of the parties was :

United Australian Pa>ty 36 United Country Party .. 12 Federal Labour Party ... 15 State Labour Party ... 8

The Parties’ Votes Reed 11 10 a.m. Of 2,966,143 votes so far counted, the United Australia Party secured 1,154,762. the Com.try Party 296,683, Federal Labour 796,412, ''fcate Labour 466,472, Douglas Credit 144,736 and Communists 4J,498. The remainder are for the Socialists and Independents. State of Parties The Herald gives the state of parties as follows :^ United Australia Party ... 31 United Country Party ... 11 Federal Labour ... 15 1 btate Labour . ... 7 1 Doubtful f ... 10 I

Herald’s Criticism I The Herald, in a leader, says ' As the Labour Party has discarded its old ideals, so the workers everyI where are discarding the Labour Party. It no longer represents them. It belies the name it bore when they gave it their allegiance. There is in this State, at all events, no longer a Labour Party. What arrogates that title to itself is a coterie grasping at power for thf aggrandisement of one section of the workers as against all the othei Sections.