THE NOMINATIONS.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXV, Issue 293, 9 December 1914, Page 4

THE NOMINATIONS.

It is evident from the nominations for the General Election to-morrow that otie of the effects of tho abolition of

the second ballot has been to magnify the importance of party. The second ballot, by seeming to offer, as it some-

times did, an opportunity for compromise between the two extremes, encouraged a certain number of independent candidates into the held, and those gentlemen gave variety and additional zest to several of the contests of three years ago, the Lyttelton Times points out. The writer goes, on to express the-view that no indepen.' dent candidate' is likely to fare par-' ticularly well in the present campaign, and the nominations indicate a general recognition of this fact.. In 1911 there were only twenty-eight constituencies in which the contest was confined to two candidates. In twentyeight constituencies there were three candidates, in sixteen four, and in three five. This year in fiftysix constituencies there are two candidates, in nineteen three, and in one four.