3G QUOTA IN PROPORTIONAL REPRESENTATION, II., 



R.S. TAS. 



House of Representatives election in 1910 (^") the num- 

 bers of electors enrolled in the constituencies in each State 

 varied up to about 15 % from the mean for the State. 

 The number of voters varied even more : leaving out a few 

 very large and a few very small constituencies, the num- 

 bers of voters varied up to about 20 % or 25 % from the 

 mean for the State. These numbers, however, were much 

 more nearly equal than is usually the case with single- 

 member districts, and this election is consequently more 

 suitable as an illustration of the arguments in §§ 73-76 

 than any other of which I have statistics. 



In New South Wales, at this election, there were con- 

 tests between one Liberal candidate and one Labour can- 

 didate (or betw^een two such candidates and a third who 

 obtained so few votes that he need not be taken into 

 account) in 24 constituencies. In these the Labour candi- 

 dates polled 245,000 votes and the Liberal candidates 

 203,000 ; and consequently the Labour party, in proportion 

 to its strength, was entitled to 13 seats and the Liberal 

 party to 11. The seats won by the parties were Labour 17, 

 Liberal 7. 



In Queensland, there were contests between one Labour 

 candidate and one Liberal candidate in each of the nine 

 constituencies. The Labour ctxndidates polled 89,000 

 votes and the Liberal candidates 76,000; the members to 

 which the parties were entitled were consequently 5 to 4. 

 The seats won by the parties were Labour 7, Liberal 2. 



In Victoria, there were contests between one Labour 

 candidate and one Liberal candidate in 19 constituencies. 

 The Labour candidates polled 216,000, and the Liberal 

 candidates 192,000; the members to which the parties 

 were entitled were consequently 10 and 9 ; and these were 

 the numbers of seats actually won by the parties. 



The results in New South Wales and Queensland, then, 

 confirm the predictions referred to in § 76, that single- 

 member constituencies will usually exaggerate the majority 

 obtained by the larger party In Victoria \he election 

 gave exactly proportional representation in the 19 con- 

 stituencies considered. But it is to be noted on the one 

 hand that a loss by Liberal candidates in Victoria of 

 only 800 votes, spread over four constituencies in which 

 their majorities were very small, would have given the 

 Labour party 14 members and reduced the Liberal mem- 



(^°) 8eo Klfcthns. 1010. Statistics relating to the Senate Election ; 

 the Gen ral Election for the Home of Representatives (&c."). (Papers of 

 the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia. Xo. 1 of 1910). 



