Gavin Davis (born 3 August 1977) is a South African communications strategist and Managing Partner of Ockham Communications, a public affairs consultancy.Ockham Communications website He previously served as a Member of Parliament and held several shadow cabinet positions.

Background

Davis grew up in Cape Town, South Africa. He holds Honours and master's degrees in politics and economics from Rhodes University, the University of Cape Town and the University of London.People's Assembly His interests include education, electoral systems and campaigning, media and elections, public broadcasting, social media and liberalism in South African politics.'Silent Majority: a crisis is brewing in basic education, Daily Maverick, 27 October 2015'Proportional Representation and Racial Campaigning in South Africa', Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, 10(2), 2004'Media coverage in Election '04: were some parties more equal than others? in J Piombo & L Nijzink (eds) Electoral politics in South Africa: assessing the first democratic decade. New York: Palgrave Macmillan'No wonder viewers are switching off', The Star, 17 July 2014'For liberalism to succeed we must dispense with dogma', Politicsweb, 22 January 2013'The anatomy of a hollow liberal mythology', Politicsweb, 13 November 2013

Political Communications

Davis joined the DA as a Researcher in 2004 and was later appointed Chief of Staff in the Leader's Office. After a stint as a Special Advisor to the Premier of the Western Cape, Helen Zille,Who's Who of Southern Africa Davis was appointed Executive Director of Communications for the DA in 2011.'DA focuses on new markets and media in run-up to 2014 poll', Business Day, 3 October 2011

As the DA's Executive Director of Communications, Davis was instrumental in the party's successful integration of traditional and digital marketing techniques.'DA puts social media strategy in overdrive ahead of elections', Business Day, 8 April 2014 The party's 2013 'anonymous' anti-etolling billboard and accompanying social media campaign was pioneering in this regard.'Spin City: DA vs. ANC', Daily Maverick, 8 October 2013

Davis was central to a number of campaigns that sought to broaden the DA's appeal beyond its traditional support base. This included the 2013 'Know Your DA' campaign'DA sets ball rolling with history lesson to the nation', Business Day, 22 April 2013 and the 2014 election campaign which began with a controversial protest march against unemployment outside the headquarters of the African National Congress in Johannesburg.'Election 2014: Democratic Alliance takes the low road to Luthuli House', Daily Maverick, 24 January 2014

Davis is credited with authoring a number of key speeches for the party leadership. This included DA Leader Mmusi Maimane's seminal 'Broken Man' speech delivered during the 2015 debate on the State of the Nation Debate in Parliament that captured the nation's mood and turned the tide against President Zuma. The speech is featured in the book 'Speeches that Shaped South Africa', which devotes a chapter to its significance.'Speeches that Shaped South Africa', Penguin Random House

Member of Parliament

In 2014, Davis was placed ninth on the DA's list of Western Cape candidates for the National Assembly. In May 2014, Davis was elected by the DA caucus to serve as a Whip.'Seasoned MPs will assist DA's new caucus leader', Business Day, 30 May 2014 In the same month, Parliamentary Leader Mmusi Maimane appointed Davis to the position of Shadow Minister of Communications.'The DA's new shadow cabinet', Politicsweb, 5 June 2014

In July 2014, Davis initiated a parliamentary inquiry into allegations that SABC Chairperson Ellen Tshabalala had lied to Parliament about her qualifications when she applied for a position on the SABC Board. The inquiry eventually found Tshabalala guilty of misconduct and perjury, and recommended her removal from the Board. Tshabalala resigned before she could be formally removed on 17 December 2014.'DA welcomes Ellen Tshabalala’s resignation', DA press statement, 17 December 2014 In January 2015, Davis exposed the irregular channeling of government money to The New Age newspaper owned by the Gupta family, an early indicator of the 'state capture' scandal that would later bring down President Zuma.'DA blasts gov’t over New Age spending', Tech Central 29 January 2015

On 3 October 2015, DA Leader Mmusi Maimane appointed Davis as Shadow Minister of Basic Education.'Changes to DA's Shadow Cabinet', DA press statement, 3 October 2015 Davis was an avid campaigner for equal education, and a fierce opponent of the militant South African Democratic Teachers' Union. On 16 February 2016, he gave a speech in the debate on the State of the Nation Address calling on President Zuma to "smash the SADTU protection racket, so that we can improve the education of every child."'Smash the SADTU protection racket' Political commentator Andrew Kenny described it in The Citizen newspaper as the best speech he had heard in the debate. "It was sincere, told an obvious truth, and dealt with a terrible problem, the appalling education of our black children", said Kenny.'SADTU Betrays Children, Andrew Kenny 23 February 2016 In January 2018, he was appointed Shadow Minister of Energy.

Liberalism

Davis has been a vocal proponent of liberal views inside and outside the Democratic Alliance. In the lead-up to the DA's 2018 Federal Congress he co-authored (with Michael Cardo MP) a letter to Congress delegates warning of anti-liberal tendencies contained in the proposed 'diversity clause' to be inserted into the party constitution.'Real Progressives Reject Groupthink, Daily Maverick 26 March 2018 A number of amendments proposed by Davis and Cardo were unanimously agreed to at the Congress.

Resignation from Parliament

In October 2018 Davis announced he was leaving Parliament to take up a senior communications role in the private sector.'Gavin Davis resigns as DA MP', News24 20 September 2018 In 2022, Davis founded Ockham Communications, a strategic communications and public affairs consultancy that advises corporate and non-profit clients across a range of sectors.Ockham Communications website The firm also publishes The Ockham Observer, a weekly news diary focused on upcoming local and global events of significance.Ockham Observer

References