RETURN PROBABLE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24412, 25 September 1940, Page 8

RETURN PROBABLE

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT LATEST ELECTION FIGURES (United Press Association) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) SYDNEY, Sept. 24. The latest figures in the Federal elections indicate the state of the parties as: — Government . • ■ • 39 Labour 30 Doubtful 5 Labour may win all five doubtful seats. At the present stage of counting Mr Menzies has gained the largest individual vote in the whole of Australia. The counting of the Senate votes improved the Government's position in all States, and a win for the Ministerial parties in every State except New South Wales is still expected. The oeDcentaee of informal votes is verv high. There were nearly 250,000 informal votes in the Senate returns for all States, excluding Western Australia. The Prime Minister regards the election results as a clear mandate for the prosecution of the war with the utmost vigour. He considered that the setback to the Government in New South Wales alone could be attributed to the sections of the Sydney press which, while not actuallv advocating a Labour Government, had constantly decried the Government's war effort and attacked individual Ministers. The official Labourite, Mr S. M. Falstein. who appears to have won the Watson seat from the Government member. Mr Jennings, is a Dractising barrister. He visited New Zealand some years ago, and participated in election campaigns there on behalf of Labour. He was on relief work, and obtained employment on the Auckland wharves. Mr Lee, who is reported to be defeating Mr Curtin in Fremantle, is a former journalist, of Western Australia. He is a fluent speaker, and has unusual organising ability, and at present represents London mining interests in Australia. The Fremantle seat has occasionally been held bv a non-Labour representative. FOURTEEN DOUBTFUL SEATS UPSETS STILL POSSIBLE SYDNEY, .Sept. 24. (Received Sept. 25, at 0.5 a.m.) The main interest in the election for the House of Representatives now centres in 14 seats, in which the distribution of preferences and absentee votes may alter the existing position. Seven are in New South Wales, two in Victoria, three in Queensland, and one each in Western Australia and Tasmania. To-day's checking of primary votes indicates that the Government parties can be sure of 32 seats and the Labour Parties of 27. The decision in a few of the 14 doubtful seats is unlikely to be known for some days, probably weeks. It is anticipated that the majority of the postal and absentee votes will favour Government candidates, as in former years, but the calculations can be completely upset by the preferences of Independent candidates, which may favour either party. Keen interest will be focussed in Mr Curtin's seat in Western Australia, where he is making little headway against what seem unbeatable odds. The latest development is the offer of Mr R. James (Labour), who represents the Hunter constituency, near Newcastle, to resign in favour of Mr Curtin in the event of the latter being defeated. There is no conformation of the report that Mr Green will resign the Kalgoorlie seat in favour of Mr Curtin.