Terry McDavitt

Terry Joseph McDavitt JP (born 2 January 1948) is a New Zealand educator, politician and activist.

Terry McDavitt JP
19th Deputy Mayor of Wellington
In office 1988–1989
Mayor	Jim Belich
Preceded by	Helene Ritchie
Succeeded by	David Watt
Wellington City Councillor
In office 1983–1992
Ward	At-large (1983-86) Lambton (1986-92)
Personal details
Born	(1948-01-02) 2 January 1948 Dannevirke, New Zealand
Political party	Labour
Other political affiliations	Values Party
Alma mater	Victoria University of Wellington

Biography

Early life

Terry McDavitt was born in Dannevirke in 1948. He was educated in Wellington at St. Patrick's College, later attending Victoria University of Wellington and graduated in 1970 with a Master of Arts degree.[1] He was an activist in his youth and organised multiple protests against the Vietnam War and apartheid.[2] In 1979 he became head of General Studies at Wellington Polytech, a position he retained until 1987, when he resigned to focus on his political career.[3][4]

McDavitt married Kate Ford in 1970 and had two children; Ruth in 1975 and Joseph in 1978. He later divorced from Ford in 1984 and later married Sue Lee in 1994.[1]

Political career

McDavitt became politically active in the early 1970s and joined the environmentalist Values Party. in 1974 he stood unsuccessfully for the Wellington City Council on a Values ticket.[5] He also served as the General Secretary of the Values Party from 1974 until 1979 when he decided to leave the party.[1]

By the 1980s McDavitt had left the Values Party and had joined the Labour Party. He stood again for the City Council in 1983 on a Labour ticket and was elected.[6][7] He transferred to the Lambton Ward in 1986 would remain on the council until 1992 when he decided not to seek re-election.[1] In 1988 he was appointed deputy to Mayor Jim Belich, holding that position until 1989 when Labour lost their majority on the council.[2]

In 1989 he was elected to the Wellington Regional Council on a Labour ticket, chairing the transport committee, and would serve for 21 years until he was defeated in 2010 standing as an independent.[8] He was the chair of both the public transport and land transport committees and also served as Deputy Chair of the Regional Council from 2001 to 2007.

Notes

1. Taylor 1998, pp. 500. sfn error: no target: CITEREFTaylor1998 (help)
2. Naylor, Shani (11 January 1989). "Terry McDavitt: ready when duty called". The Evening Post.
3. Busby, Anita (15 May 1987). "McDavitt quits job for council". The Dominion.
4. "Farewelling Polytech's Problems". The Evening Post. 10 February 1987.
5. "City Council". The Dominion. 14 October 1974.
6. Dawson, P.L. (25 October 1983). Declaration of Result of Election (Report). Wellington City Council.
7. "Local Body Polls '83". The Evening Post. 10 October 1983.
8. "2010 election results". Greater Wellington Regional Council. Retrieved 29 May 2017.

References

• Taylor, Alister, ed. (1998). New Zealand Who's Who, 1998 edition. Auckland. ISSN 1172-9813.

External links

• Photo of McDavitt (left) as Values Party secretary

Political offices
Preceded by Helene Ritchie	Deputy Mayor of Wellington 1988–1989	Succeeded by David Watt
New constituency	Wellington City Councillor for Lambton Ward 1986–1992	Succeeded by Liz Thomas