Born in England in 1876, Davis sailed to New Zealand as a child settling in Auckland and eventually became a trade unionist.

[1] He became the Secretary of the Auckland Drivers' Union in 1899, a position he held until retiring just prior to his death due to ill health.

[2] Davis contested the 1910 Auckland East by-election as the official candidate of the Labour Party where he came in second place.

[4] The local prohibition league also endorsed Davis as the Liberal candidate (and eventual winner) Arthur Myers owned a brewery.

[5] He stood for the Roskill electorate in the New Zealand House of Representatives in 1919 for the Labour Party where he placed third out of four candidates.