Albert Davy

Albert Ernest Davy (17 August 1886 – 13 June 1959) was a New Zealand political organiser and campaign manager; and at the height of his career, was regarded as one of the best in the country.

Davy's first major political activity came as part of Douglas Lysnar's successful campaign for the Gisborne seat in the 1919 election.

He was largely responsible for Reform's strategy in the 1925 election, focusing strongly on the party's leader, Gordon Coates.

Also unusual was the degree of central control – party headquarters provided each candidate with instructions and guidance, rather than simply allowing them to run their own campaigns.

When a leadership clash between Forbes and Veitch loomed, Davy arranged for Joseph Ward, a former Liberal premier, to take the position as a compromise candidate.

Davy came to believe that as long as United and Reform remained enemies, the left would hold the balance of power, and would therefore be able to dictate terms.

As such, Davy began to advocate an "anti-socialist" grand coalition between United and Reform, hoping to shut the left out altogether.

In early 1930, Davy publicly attacked Ward, accusing him of authoritarianism and of caving in to Labour's demands too readily.

However, Davy did not follow Ormond and his allies when later broke from the Reform Party, founding an organisation would evolve into the New Zealand Legion.

The group was named the Democrat Party, and Thomas Hislop, a former Mayor of Wellington, was recruited to be its political leader.