Ed Garvey

Edward Robert Garvey (April 18, 1940 – February 22, 2017) was an American lawyer, activist, and Democratic politician from Wisconsin. He was executive director of the National Football League Players Association (players' union) from 1971 to 1983. He also ran unsuccessfully for United States Senate (1986 and 1988) and Governor of Wisconsin. Later in life he organized the first "Fighting Bob Fest", an annual gathering of progressive activists in Wisconsin.

Background Garvey graduated from the University of Wisconsin (now the University of Wisconsin–Madison) and spent two years in the U.S. Army; he then returned to Madison and entered the University of Wisconsin Law School, where he earned a Juris Doctor degree.

Law and union work

Soon after graduation, Garvey joined Lindquist & Vennum, a Minneapolis law firm. The firm worked for the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), the labor organization representing the professional American football players in the National Football League (NFL), and in 1970 Garvey was assigned to counsel union president John Mackey regarding negotiations on a new four year contract with the league's owners. Garvey was later offered the position of executive director in the now-certified NFLPA in 1971.

The NFLPA became recognized by the owners as a full-fledged National Labor Relations Board union, and damages totaling $13.65 million were awarded to past and present players for antitrust violations against them.

After leaving the NFLPA After leaving the NFLPA, Garvey served as deputy attorney general in Wisconsin under Bronson La Follette, serving as the number-two official in the Wisconsin Department of Justice and specializing in environmental issues. Garvey also became a prominent leader with Wisconsin labor groups, particularly the Paperworkers Union (now United Steelworkers) in contract disputes with International Paper.

He organized the Fighting Bob Fest, named for Robert M. La Follette.

Political career In 1986, Garvey ran for the U.S. Senate from Wisconsin, losing to Republican incumbent Bob Kasten by a small margin after a very bitter election. In an unsuccessful bid for Wisconsin governor in 1998 against three-term incumbent Tommy Thompson, Garvey sought to highlight campaign finance reform and limited contributions to his campaign to a fixed amount per donor. Thompson won by a wide margin.

Garvey was the editor and publisher of the political website FightingBob.com, which focused on Wisconsin and national issues from a progressive perspective. He regularly appeared on the local NPR national public radio affiliate WHAD to provide a progressive viewpoint on a variety of topics.

Death Garvey died of complications from Parkinson's disease at a nursing home in Verona, Wisconsin.

Electoral history

U.S. Senate (1986)

U.S. Senate (1988)

Wisconsin Governor (1998)