Politics in Eden-Monaro

Abstract

This book is another intensive study of electoral behaviour in the series begun by the Nuffield studies in England, of which The British General Election of 19^5 by McCal lum and Readman was the first, and by studies like The People's Choice by Paul Lazarsfeld et al. in th* United States. It follows another study of an individual Australian electorate in The Gwydir By-Election (1954) by Mayer and Rydon. The subject matter of political science is probably more difficult to treat scientifically than that of any other social science, and within the field of politics, voting behaviour is perhaps the most complex subject. The reasons why voters vote as they do on election day are known in vague generality by almost every body and specifically by nobody; at least, not yet. The authors of this study of the marginal country elec torate of Eden-Monaro have en deavoured through reference to the economic geography of the elector ate, the occupational characteristics of voters, the strengths of local party membership, the background and personalities of candidates, the man ner in which campaigns were waged, and the history of voting trends at previous elections to explain voting behaviour at the Federal Election of 1955 and the State Election of 1956. The Federal electoral division of Eden-Monaro, which has been held by A. D. Fr?ser for Labor since 1943, and the N.S.W. State electoral divisions of Monaro, Goulburn and South Coast, held by Messrs. J. W. Seiffert (Labor), L. J. Tully (Labor) and J. G. Beale (Liberal) respectively, are involved.