Rob Davis (Ontario politician)
Encyclopedia
Rob Davis is a Canadian
politician. He served on the York
city council from 1991 to 1997, and was a member of the Toronto City Council
from 1997 to 2000.
, Ontario
and received a Bachelor of Arts
degree in Political Science
from York University
. He worked as a stockbroker in private life.
, as city residents voted out a number of incumbents following the revelations of the Fairbank Park Scandal. Davis was the first Black Canadian
elected to the York council in the city's 200-year history.
He was re-elected to the York council in the 1994 election
. His council experience includes service on the Administrative Services Committee, the Works and Parks Committee, the boards of health, the Northwestern General Hospital, the York Library and the St. Clair Community Youth Services.
in a 1996 by-election
in York South
, as a candidate of the Progressive Conservative Party
when New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Bob Rae
vacated his seat. Davis defeated Zubair Chowdhry for the Progressive Conservative nomination, and placed third in the election with 5,093 votes (25.69%). The winner was Gerard Kennedy
who shortly afterwards sought the leadership of the Liberals. City councillor David Miller finished second for the NDP. Davis was 32 years old at the time.
as one of two members for Ward 28. He served as chair of Toronto's crime prevention task force, and in 2000 was the driving force behind a gun buyback program
which allocated fifty dollars to any city resident who surrendered a gun. The program was generally considered a success, and Davis has said that the city was able to collect over 2,000 guns in less than two weeks. He also served as vice-chair of the Toronto Transit Commission
(TTC) from 1997 to 2000.
Davis was known as a right-wing councillor, and often highlighted tax reduction and law-and-order issues. An ally of mayor Mel Lastman
, he sought to have Howard Moscoe
removed as TTC chair in 1999 In 1998, Davis was one of 13 councillors to vote against same-sex benefits for city employees.
, and some sitting councillors were forced to face one another for re-election. Davis was defeated in Ward 21, losing to fellow councillor Joe Mihevc
by over 3,500 votes following a very divisive contest. He sought to return to council in the 2003 campaign
in Ward 33 in the eastern part of the former city of North York, but was narrowly defeated by Shelley Carroll
.
He has worked as a consultant since leaving the council. In 2004, he organized a march in support of police chief Julian Fantino
, after it was announced that the deadlocked Toronto Police Services Board would not renew Fantino's contract.
Davis was appointed to Ward 6 (York) of the Toronto Catholic District School Board
to replace Christine Nunziata, who was removed for missing three consecutive board meetings, on May 8, 2010. Immediately after his appointment, Davis said there needed to be an "infrastructure of integrity" in place before the Trustees can restore parent confidence and move on from the Trustee spending scandal. His first motion as trustee was to call upon the board to create an integrity commissioner position at their next meeting held on May 14, 2010.
In the 2010 municipal election
, Davis ran unsuccessfully for Toronto City Council from Ward 15 in an attempt to replace Howard Moscoe
.
Unofficial results as of October 26, 2010 03:55 AM
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
politician. He served on the York
York, Ontario
York is a dissolved municipality in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Geographically, it is located northwest of Old Toronto, southwest of North York and east of Etobicoke, where it is bounded by the Humber River. Formerly a separate city, it was one of six municipalities that amalgamated in 1998 to form...
city council from 1991 to 1997, and was a member of the Toronto City Council
Toronto City Council
The Toronto City Council is the governing body of the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Members represent wards throughout the city, and are known as councillors....
from 1997 to 2000.
Background
Davis was born in TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
and received a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in Political Science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
from York University
York University
York University is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, Ontario's second-largest graduate school, and Canada's leading interdisciplinary university....
. He worked as a stockbroker in private life.
Election to York city council
He was one of six new councillors elected for York in the 1991 municipal electionToronto municipal election, 1991
The 1991 Toronto municipal election was held on November 12, 1991 to elect councillors in Metropolitan Toronto, Canada, and mayors, councillors and school trustees in Toronto, York, East York, North York, Scarborough and Etobicoke....
, as city residents voted out a number of incumbents following the revelations of the Fairbank Park Scandal. Davis was the first Black Canadian
Black Canadian
'Black Canadians is a designation used for people of Black African descent, who are citizens or permanent residents of Canada. The term specifically refers to Canadians with Sub-Saharan African ancestry. The majority of Black Canadians are of Caribbean origin...
elected to the York council in the city's 200-year history.
He was re-elected to the York council in the 1994 election
Toronto municipal election, 1994
The 1994 Toronto municipal election was held in November 1994 to elect councillors in Metropolitan Toronto, Canada, and mayors, councillors and school trustees in Toronto, York, East York, North York, Scarborough and Etobicoke....
. His council experience includes service on the Administrative Services Committee, the Works and Parks Committee, the boards of health, the Northwestern General Hospital, the York Library and the St. Clair Community Youth Services.
1996 Ontario election
He campaigned for the Legislative Assembly of OntarioLegislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...
in a 1996 by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
in York South
York South
York South was an electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1904 to 1979, and in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1926 to 1999....
, as a candidate of the Progressive Conservative Party
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario
The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario , is a right-of-centre political party in Ontario, Canada. The party was known for many years as "Ontario's natural governing party." It has ruled the province for 80 of the years since Confederation, including an uninterrupted run from 1943 to 1985...
when New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Bob Rae
Bob Rae
Robert Keith "Bob" Rae, PC, OC, OOnt, QC, MP is a Canadian politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Toronto Centre and interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
vacated his seat. Davis defeated Zubair Chowdhry for the Progressive Conservative nomination, and placed third in the election with 5,093 votes (25.69%). The winner was Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Michael Kennedy is a Canadian politician in Ontario, Canada. He served as Ontario's Minister of Education from 2003 to 2006, when he resigned to make an unsuccessful bid for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada...
who shortly afterwards sought the leadership of the Liberals. City councillor David Miller finished second for the NDP. Davis was 32 years old at the time.
Toronto City Council
The City of York was amalgamated into the new City of Toronto in 1997, and Davis was elected to Toronto City Council in the 1997 electionToronto municipal election, 1997
The 1997 Toronto municipal election was the first election held for offices in the amalgamated "megacity" of Toronto, Canada. The elections were administered by the old City of Toronto and its five suburbs within Metropolitan Toronto...
as one of two members for Ward 28. He served as chair of Toronto's crime prevention task force, and in 2000 was the driving force behind a gun buyback program
Gun buyback program
A gun buyback program is a program instituted by an official body to have handguns or other kinds of weapons turned in. A reward is usually posted for these weapons.-Boston:...
which allocated fifty dollars to any city resident who surrendered a gun. The program was generally considered a success, and Davis has said that the city was able to collect over 2,000 guns in less than two weeks. He also served as vice-chair of the Toronto Transit Commission
Toronto Transit Commission
-Island Ferry:The ferry service to the Toronto Islands was operated by the TTC from 1927 until 1962, when it was transferred to the Metro Parks and Culture department. Since 1998, the ferry service is run by Toronto Parks and Recreation.-Gray Coach:...
(TTC) from 1997 to 2000.
Davis was known as a right-wing councillor, and often highlighted tax reduction and law-and-order issues. An ally of mayor Mel Lastman
Mel Lastman
Melvin Douglas "Mel" Lastman , nicknamed "Mayor Mel", is a former businessman and politician. He is the founder of the Bad Boy Furniture chain. He served as the mayor of the former city of North York, Ontario, Canada from 1972 until 1997. At the end of 1997, North York, along with five other...
, he sought to have Howard Moscoe
Howard Moscoe
Howard Moscoe was a city councillor in Toronto, Canada, representing Ward 15 in the western part of Eglinton-Lawrence. Among the most prominent and longest-serving councillors in the city, he is also known for an outspokenness which has landed him in controversy at times. Moscoe is a member of...
removed as TTC chair in 1999 In 1998, Davis was one of 13 councillors to vote against same-sex benefits for city employees.
Defeat
The wards in Toronto were redistributed prior to the 2000 electionToronto municipal election, 2000
The Toronto municipal election of 2000, dubbed "Toronto Vote 2000" was the municipal and school board election held in the City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada on November 13, 2000.Elections were held to elect:* the Mayor of Toronto,* councillors for each of Toronto's 44 wards,* trustees...
, and some sitting councillors were forced to face one another for re-election. Davis was defeated in Ward 21, losing to fellow councillor Joe Mihevc
Joe Mihevc
Joe Mihevc is a city councillor in Toronto, Canada. He represents one of the two St. Paul's wards, Ward 21 St. Paul's.-Background:...
by over 3,500 votes following a very divisive contest. He sought to return to council in the 2003 campaign
Toronto municipal election, 2003
The Toronto municipal election of 2003 was held on November 10, 2003, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to elect the Mayor of Toronto, 44 city councillors, and school board trustees.David Miller was elected mayor ....
in Ward 33 in the eastern part of the former city of North York, but was narrowly defeated by Shelley Carroll
Shelley Carroll
Shelley Carroll is a city councillor in Toronto, Canada. She represents Ward 33 Don Valley East, one of the two Don Valley East municipal wards. She was formerly the Chair of the City's Budget Committee.-Background:...
.
2003 election
During the 2003 contest, Davis supported tenant advocacy, the restoration of rent control and gas tax financing for the TTC. Acknowledging that Progressive Conservative governments at the provincial level had opposed all three initiatives, he said, "I differed with my party".He has worked as a consultant since leaving the council. In 2004, he organized a march in support of police chief Julian Fantino
Julian Fantino
Julian Fantino is a retired police official and the elected Member of the Parliament of Canada for the riding of Vaughan following a November 29, 2010 by-election...
, after it was announced that the deadlocked Toronto Police Services Board would not renew Fantino's contract.
Return to politics
In April 2008, he was appointed to the to replace trustee Christine Nunziata, who resigned due to allegations over her spending.Davis was appointed to Ward 6 (York) of the Toronto Catholic District School Board
Toronto Catholic District School Board
The Toronto Catholic District School Board is the publicly-funded Catholic school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada, headquartered in North York. It is one of the two English boards of education in the City of Toronto, serving the former municipalities of Scarborough, North York, York, East York,...
to replace Christine Nunziata, who was removed for missing three consecutive board meetings, on May 8, 2010. Immediately after his appointment, Davis said there needed to be an "infrastructure of integrity" in place before the Trustees can restore parent confidence and move on from the Trustee spending scandal. His first motion as trustee was to call upon the board to create an integrity commissioner position at their next meeting held on May 14, 2010.
In the 2010 municipal election
Toronto city council election, 2010
For information on the campaign for mayor see Toronto mayoral election, 2010The 2010 Toronto council election was held on October 25, 2010 to elect councillors to represent Toronto's 44 wards at Toronto City Council...
, Davis ran unsuccessfully for Toronto City Council from Ward 15 in an attempt to replace Howard Moscoe
Howard Moscoe
Howard Moscoe was a city councillor in Toronto, Canada, representing Ward 15 in the western part of Eglinton-Lawrence. Among the most prominent and longest-serving councillors in the city, he is also known for an outspokenness which has landed him in controversy at times. Moscoe is a member of...
.
Election results
| 2010 Toronto election Toronto city council election, 2010 For information on the campaign for mayor see Toronto mayoral election, 2010The 2010 Toronto council election was held on October 25, 2010 to elect councillors to represent Toronto's 44 wards at Toronto City Council... , Ward 15 |
||
| Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| Josh Colle | 6,668 | 40.375% |
| Rob Davis | 5,399 | 32.691% |
| Ron Singer | 2,275 | 13.775% |
| Tony Evangelista | 1,173 | 7.103% |
| Giuseppe Pede | 472 | 2.858% |
| Eva Tavares | 464 | 2.81% |
| William Reitsma | 64 | 0.388% |
| Total | 16,515 | 100% |
Unofficial results as of October 26, 2010 03:55 AM