PRE-SELECTION OF PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATES

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 279, 24 November 1937, Page 6

PRE-SELECTION OF PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATES

'Y’HE value of the machinery established by the National Party for selecting the candidates for the forthcoming elections next year is exemplified by the turn of events at Palmerston North, where Mr. A. E. Mansford, the sitting Mayor of the City, Mr. J. A. Nash, the former member of Parliament, and Mr. H. Oram have each been nominated for candidature. Each of these gentlemen has promised that if he is unsuccessful in securing the party’s nomination he will work in support of the selected candidate. Each nominee has an equal chance of being selected and the members of the party will be able to choose him whom they believe will best represent the constituency. At the last general election Mr. J. Hodgens, the successful candidate, secured the seat for the Labour Party by polling 4400 votes, whereas Messrs. Mansford and Nash together secured 8333, or roughly 4000 votes more than were east for the present member. At the previous election, in a straight contest, Mr. Nash polled 6465 votes and Mr. Hodgens 5220, which indicated that on the earlier occasion the latter received a considerable body of protest votes. These protest votes will not be available to him at the next election because such voters, having registered their protest either by voting for Mr. Hodgens in the first instance, and either for Mr. Hodgens or Mr. Mansford in the second, will not have the same incentive to act in like manner once again. It can be assumed that Mr. Hodgens’ vote will be in the vicinity of 4000, as he is bound to lose some votes on the xvhole. By adopting the machinery of pre-selection, therefore, the expectation is that the Palmerston North seat will go to the National Party and thus will he ended a flagrant minority representation.