LICENSING POLL

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 84, 3 January 1920, Page 6

LICENSING POLL

* * THE LATEST FIGURES. Tho ofltgjal counts for -Ifi districts; plus the preliminary counts for the remaining i! 2 districts, give the following totals iu tho licensing poll:— Continuance 238,5fi!) State Purchaso '. 31,003 Prohibition 207,-175 The combined Continuance-Slate Purchase majority against Prohibition is 2(197. The Prohibition tolal is short of an absolute majority by 13-19 voles. The- districts for which official counts lmve not yet been received : ro as follow:—Parnoll. Franklin, liotorua, 13ay of Plenty, Gisborne, Taramtlci, patea, Palmerston, i\Uinawalu,_ Wanganui, Waitumo, Wairarapa, Wellington South, Nelson, Motueka, Westland, Hurunui, Kaiapoi, Wakatipu, -Bruce, Clutlia, ami Awarua. The nbsent voters' permits and seamen's rights still to be accounted for number rather more than 40C0, and there are also 959 soldiers' votes, cast aboard transports at sea, to be counted. The number of these permits actually used is not known, and may not exceed 3000. If the remaining votes are distributed roughly in the same proportions as tho votes of tho same classes already counted, the final combined majority against prohibition will be between 3000 and 350!). This will mean that prohibition ■will be from 1500 to 1750 vote l ; short of an absolute majority; and in accordance with the terms of tho Licensing Act, 1918, no issito having been carried; Continuance will be deemed to havo been carried. Additional official returns aro as follow State ProContinuance. Purchase, hibition, ICaipara ... 2,202 332 2,708 Auckland 13,4-10 1,161 11,029 LOCAL OPTION. Tho oflic'al return in tho Grey Lvnn local option poll is: Restoration 824-t No-License 5067 Result: No-License continues.