THE ELECTORAL BOUNDARIES.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXIX, Issue 148, 15 August 1911, Page 4

THE ELECTORAL BOUNDARIES.

The report of the Reprer.entatici Commission was made public yester

lay and fbo provisional bonndarios of tho new electorates made known. As was fully anticipated iho South island loses a. scat, and the Xortli Island , 'a ins one. r !'hc Southern seat to lisappoav is Taieii, represented in the present Parliament by the Hon. T. .Mackenzie, and the now electorate will be called Raglan and is situated mostly in the old Waikato constituency. It also takes in portions of Taumarunui, which lies to the south, and fauranga, Air Kerries’ scattered constituency! which is to the east, running right over to the coast. The '.Vest Coast will ha the western boundary of the new electorate and it will include the towns of Raglan and Xawiiia, on the coast. On its northern boundary, it will abut on tho Franklin electorate, now represented by Mr Massey. By tin’s change, Air H. J. Orcenslade, the member for Waikato, will lose his former distinction of representing one of the most scattered districts. When the Representation Commission commenced work of the Waikato electorate, after the recent census, it showed a population of nearly 18,000, which was further increased by the substantial addition due in the way of a percentage allowed to country areas for the purpose of determining the quota. Taurnaruuui, which contributes substantially to the new electorate, has a population of 19,215, or -1000 in excess of the quota, without allowing for the rural percentage. So far ag our own electorate is concerned the changes are somewhat radical. The principal alteration is the cutting ont of Inglewood borough, and the Stratford electorate, as now constituted, runs aver a. big area of country. Much of this country will ho now ground to the candidates, while, on tho other hand, the candidates will be new men to many parts of the electorate. The political aspect of the changes, so far as can ho judged at present, does not alter the party balance very mud; in Iho Stratford electorate.