Smith came to prominence as the Leeds District Secretary of the National Union of Gasworkers and General Labourers.
He served on the Leeds Trades and Labour Council, including a period as its president, and on numerous local committees.
[1] He was considered to be on the right-wing of the union, suspicious of the Independent Labour Party, and avoiding industrial action.
[2] Smith was a supporter of the Labour Party, and stood unsuccessfully for Leeds City Council in the West ward.
At the 1906 UK general election, he was credited with gaining the backing of Irish immigrants for James O'Grady in Leeds East.