TAUMARUNUI ELECTION

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2489, 16 June 1915, Page 9

TAUMARUNUI ELECTION

OPPOSITIONIST LEADS THE STATE OF PARTIES The by-election for Taumarunui seat rendered necessary by the annulling of the election of December last by an Election Court was .held yesterday. The returns were still incomplete last night, but the latest figures forwarded to the ohief electoral officer from Te Kuiti give Mr. Jennings, the Opposition candidate, a majority, of 154 votes. . Following was the result of the polling:— W. T. Jennings (0.) 8790 C. K. Wilson (R.) 3636 Majority for Jennings 154 'At this stage there were still nine small returns to come, which could not affect the result, and also \otes recorded _ under 68 absent • voters' permit? which were exercised. At' the December election the official result was as under:— Jf- T T- Jennings (0.) 4012 0. K. Wilson (R.) 3806 A. Shortland (I.O.) 37 Majority for Jennings 206 The state of parties in the House remains, after three by-clectioris and four election petitions, exactly as it "was when the official returns were declared, in some cases after recounts, in De- . cemher last. The Government have a strength of 41 in the House, and the cobbined opponents of th Government have a strength of 39. AN ASSURED MAJORITY. STATEMENT BY THE PRIME MINISTER. After the last returns oame to hand last night, the Prime Minister made a. ihort statement on the political situation 1 to a reporter. "We have an assured majority in the 1 House,'-' he said, "and though I should 1 have liked to seoure another supporter, ' Ido not anticipate any serious difficulty ' about being able to carry on,, and do ' the business of the country. It is quite { evident so far as ii» is possible to judge, ' that when all the returns come in the f Opposition candidate's majority, as com- i pared with that at the general election c in December, will be found to have £ been considerably reduced. Analysis of 1 the figures for the various booths show < that- we secured a majority at by I far the greater number of polling places, l but the one centre which has determined 1 the election is Taumarunui, where Mr. Jennings has a big majority. Person- i ally, I do not feel at all discouraged, < for the results of the* two by-elections, ( have shown that the Government stands i even better with the country than it did ] six months It will now remain i for the Opposition Party to show 1 whether they are anxious to force an- j other general election on the country ] or not." i