STATE OF PARTIES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 11 September 1943, Page 4

STATE OF PARTIES

IN NEW FEDERAL HOUSE COUNT OF PREFERENCES NOT YET COMPLETED. BUT LABOUR ASSURED OF BIG MAJORITY. (By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright) (Received This Day, 11.50 a.m.) SYDNEY, This Day. Although the final results of the Federal elections will not be known until the distribution of preferences is completed in the middle of next week, the strength of parties in the new Parliament is likely to be:— Labour 52 United Australia Party 12 Country Party 8 Independents 2 The Opposition leaders, Mr Fadden and Sir Earle Page, retained their seats on the distribution of preferences, after being strongly challenged by Labour candidates. The figures for North Sydney are incomplete, but the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, Mr Hughes, is expected to hold his seat by a comfortable majority. In the Reid electorate, Sydney, the sitting Official Labour candidate, Mr C. A. Morgan, decisively defeated the former State Premier, Mr J. T. Lang, who will now contest the Auburn seat at the next State election. He resigned from Auburn to stand for Reid. After leading by 7,500 votes on the primaries, the Labour candidate, Mrs Jessie Street, was beaten in Wentworth by the sitting U.A.P. member, Captain E. J. Harrison. Preferences turned the tables in favour of Captain Harrison. In Tasmania, Dame Enid Lyons, wife of a former Federal Prime Minister, is having a close contest with the Labour candidate and the result is still in doubt. The Senate count should be completed by the end of next week. Labour is assured of a comfortable majority.