Proportional Representation

Levin Daily Chronicle, 24 April 1917, Page 3

Proportional Representation

« (Ohristchurch Evening News.) In the Alexandra Hal J, before a large audience, Mr G. Hogben, M.A., F.G.S., C.M.G., delivered an interesting and informative address on "Proportional Representation." The mayor (Mr H. Holland) presided in the early part of the evening and introduced Mr Hogben; Councillor W. H. Cooper presided over the remainder of the proceedings. MJr Hogben, who has made a close study of voting systems, remarked that about 300 different systems of proportional voting had been suggested atdifferent times, and about 20 were in actual operation. These could b*! roughly divided into two classes—list systems, and systems which were modifications of tho Hare system. To the last mentioned, the system to be used at the approaching municipal elections in Christ hrirch belonged; it was tli pa mo system as was used in elect i':r for' the Tasmanian House of Assembly. Mr Hogben gavo a number of interesting examples of what he claimed to be the inequitable working of the old system of voting, drawing many of hi illustrations from the results of past British eleetioss. He explained very fully the method of counting the votes at elections held nrder the jVoportiona! representation system. As to the method of voting, he emphasized the necessity for the voter carrying out the plain instructions given as to marking bis paper by placing tho figures 1, 2, 3,. 4, 5, and so on in front of the names of the candidates, in tho nrclcjr of his preference that +he voter has decided upon. lie strongly urged that the voter before going into the booth to record bis vote, should make his, or her, mind as to the ord f in which it was intended to nmrlc the voting paper. Every voter, he said, .sir uhl c.-iso as many choices' as he could intelligently exercise. Thus, in respect to the elections of connhilllors in Ohristchurch, each voter should attempt to indicate his preference for 29 candidates. It was not necessary for the voter to stop marking his preferences once he had exhausted tihe list of tho names of the party he supported; preferences ■ indicated after the preferences for the candidates on the ticket could not affect tho interests cf the party , candidates. The system, besides being absolutely scientific, ialsD> encouraged straight-out, honest voting. The voter who thought that a popular candidate would have no difficulty in securing the necessary quota ought' not, therefore, to refrain from giving the popular candidate liis first preference because all the votes secured by tihe popular candidate over and above the necessary quota were transferred to the next popular candidate. In voting for a ticket it was not absolutely essential that all who voted for it should indicate the same preference for each candidate; the adjustments made in transferring votes would ensure that each vote would be fully effective. No fluking was possible, as the system left no tiling: to chance. As to the time that would be occupied in counting the votes. Mr Hogben admitted that it was difficult to estimate. The lengtli of the process varied a great deal, according to circumistances; it depended chiefly, on the number of seats to be filled, the number of candidates, the comparative strength of parties, or candidates if there were no parties, 'and the distribution of the votes. For instance, in the Tasmanian general election of 1909 in one case there wore six seats to be filled and nine candidates, sixteen counts "were necessary; in another instance—the Bass electorate—during the same election, there were six seats to be filled, there were thirteen candidates, and fifty-four counts were required ; and in tho Denison district there were six seats to be filled, there were sixteen candidates and 109 counts were necessary to find the result of the poll. He left it as a riddle to the audience to endeavour to compute how many counts would be necessary when, as in the case of the Ohristchurch City Council, there were sixteen seats to be filled and thirty candidates. At the conclusion of his address, Mr Hogben answered a number of questions, and was accorded ia hearty vote of thanks for his interesting ad dress.