N.Z. Election Analysed

Northern Advocate, 7 December 1943, Page 4

N.Z. Election Analysed

A comparison of the votes received by the major parties at the last two New Zealand elections is as follows:

‘•‘lncluding People's Movement, 7458, and Real Democracy Movement, 5910. Dividing the total number of votes cast by the number of seats gives an average electorate of 11.761. Taking this as a quota would give the parties the following representation, compared with the number of members actually returned:— Proportion Returned

Urban and Rural An analysis of the voting is as follows: Urban electorates (four metropolitan areas and suburbs): Labour, 220,014; Nn tional, 100,114; majority for Labour, 59,900. Areas outside of the four centres: Labour. 227.493; National. 249,463; majority for National, 21,970. Urban electorates, including provincial centres (Hamilton, Gisborne, Napier, Hastings. New Plymouth. Wanganui, Palmerston North, Nelson, Timaru, Invercargill): Labour, 280,345; National, 216.436; majority for Labour. 69.909. Rural electorates (including Maori electorates): Labour, 167,213; National, 193,141; majority for National, 25,928. Excluding the Maori electorates, the National majority is increased to 34,537. Percentages Labour, in 1938. gained 55.83 per cent, of the total valid votes polled, compared with 47.56 per cent, at the recent election. The National Party secured 40.27 per cent, of the total votes in 1938, compared with 43.53 per cent, this year. The Democratic Labour Party was supported by 4.33 per cent, of the total electorate, the People’s Movement by 0.79 per cent., the Real Democracy Movement by C.G3 per cent., and Independents by 3.16 per cent. Cn the civilian voting the Labour and National Parties each had a lead in 40 of the 80 electorates but. with the addition of service votes. Labour gained five more seats and an Independent, one. at the expense of the Nationalists. The strength of the parties in the new House will be: Labour, 45;' National, 34; Indc- ' pendent, 1. 1 The electorates in which the loading : candidate was changed as the result of the service voting were; Eden, Palmerston North, G’caki, Wairarapa, Oamaru. and Nelson. All went to Labour except Nelson. which was retained by the sitting Independent, Mr. H. Atmore. A summary of the service voting is as follows: Labour, 48,987; National, 32.668; Democratic Labour. 6177; others, 4386; total, 92.218.

1943 , 1938 Variation Labour 447,5C7 523.290 -80.783 National 409,577 331.C81 4-28,490 Dernoc. Lab. 40.711 — 4-40,711 Others 43,118* 36,942 4-6,176

Labour 38 45 National 35 34 Democratic Labour 3 0 Independents g .1 Others 1 0