Keith Davey

Douglas Keith Davey, (April 21, 1926 January 17, 2011) was a Canadian politician and campaign organizer.

Family, early life and education Born in Toronto, Ontario to Charles Minto Davey (Toronto Star Production Manager) and Grace Viola (née Curtis), Keith Davey attended high school at North Toronto Collegiate Institute. Davey graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto in 1949.

Business career Davey became a sales manager for CKFH, a Toronto radio station, from 1949 to 1960. The station was owned and managed by noted broadcaster Foster Hewitt.

In 1966, Davey served briefly as the second commissioner of the Canadian Football League, resigning after less than two months on the job, due to stated incompatibility with many leading league figures.

Political career Davey became a political organizer for the Liberal Party at the constituency level in Toronto in his early 20s, and joined the Executive of the Ontario Young Liberals in the 1950s, along with Judy LaMarsh (later a federal cabinet minister). In 1960 he became a campaign manager for his home riding of Eglinton.

Davey was appointed National Campaign Director of the Liberal Party of Canada in 1961. He directed the Liberal campaigns in 1963 and 1965. Commuting regularly between homes in Ottawa and Toronto, Davey played important roles in every federal Liberal campaign up to and including 1984, serving Prime Ministers Lester Pearson, Pierre Trudeau, and John Turner. These elections were held in 1968, 1972, 1974, 1979, 1980, and 1984.

In 1986, Davey published a political memoir, The Rainmaker: a Passion for Politics.

Death Davey died on January 17, 2011, aged 84, at Belmont House in Toronto. He had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease. He was survived by his second wife, and his three children from his first marriage.