Mr. Heseltine is counting on a combination of votes for him and abstentions to deny Mrs. Thatcher a first-ballot victory.

As expected, Mr. Goldwater won a resounding first-ballot victory.

In the presidential election, a candidate must obtain at least 50% of the votes in order to secure a first-ballot victory.

Possibility of a Runoff His polls also convince the Mayor he will win a first-ballot victory.

A few hours later, the 40-year-old Macdonald had won a resounding first-ballot victory to become the new Liberal leader.

Now McGovern was virtually guaranteed a first-ballot victory, and the folks from South Carolina, whom I had come to like a lot, could stay.

Maybe their presence might help deny the front-runner a first-ballot victory.

The Communist Party fought hard to deny Mr. Yeltsin a first-ballot victory and force a runoff.

Eisenhower was nominated over Taft and Warren in a close, first-ballot victory.

After Mr. Nixon's easy first-ballot victory, it took 28 hours of intense debate to decide on Mr. Agnew.