Jaime Watt is a Canadian political strategist who was most notable for playing an important role in the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario's two election victories under the leadership of Mike Harris.[1]
A native of Montreal, Quebec, Watt ran for city council in Oakville at age 19. He became a Tory campaign strategist in the 1995 Ontario provincial election, where he organized the campaign's TV commercials. Watt served as the first director of communications in the Harris government. Later, Watt served as director of message and creative in the PCs' 1999 election victory. In the interregnum, he served as executive vice president of Pizza Pizza, amongst other consulting contracts in research, mediation and public affairs.
Watt backed Jim Flaherty's bid to replace Harris as PC party leader, but Ernie Eves won the 2002 party leadership election. Eves, however, appointed him and Leslie Noble as co-chairs of the Tory election campaign. Watt's selection was widely seen as an embrace by Eves of Flaherty's more right-wing positions. Watt was widely considered the mastermind of the widely criticized idea of presenting the 2003 provincial government budget at a Magna International auto parts factory instead of in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. The National Post blamed Watt for the "Evil reptilian kitten-eater from another planet" debacle.[2]
Later that year, he became co-chair of Barbara Hall's campaign to become mayor of Toronto. (Hall was widely considered to be affiliated with the Liberal Party). In early 2004, he led Belinda Stronach's team for the federal Conservative Party.
Watt is openly gay and campaigned prominently for same-sex marriage. He served a term as leader of the Canadian Human Rights Campaign.[3]
Watt is a research and strategy specialist having pioneered the practice of forensic research and communications in Canada. Having conducted more than 5,000 focus groups in his career, in Canada and abroad, he is one of the country's most experienced qualitative researchers.
He has been heavily involved in raising money for charity, in particular as chair of the Board of Directors of Casey House in Toronto.[4]
When not campaigning, he works with Navigator Ltd., a public affairs strategy firm, which also employs figures such as Robin Sears, Martha Durdin, Will Stewart and Joseph Lavoie. He has a daughter named Heather who herself has held a senior role on the campaign of John Tory.
In 2009, Egale Canada presented Watt with its inaugural Leadership Award,[5] a decision that was denounced by gay activists who critiqued Watt's role in cutting funding to youth services, closing Wellesley Hospital which was one of the best facilities for HIV/AIDS treatments, and delisting sexual reassignment surgery from OHIP [6][7]
References
- ^ "Ontario Premier Harris Dancing With Homosexual Activists". REAL Women of Canada. July/August, 2000. http://www.realwomenca.com/newsletter/2000_July_August/article_11.html. Retrieved 2007-07-08.
- ^ "Eves takes high road as Tory bickering begins". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 2003-09-29. http://www.cbc.ca/toronto/story/to_eveselwction20030929.html.
- ^ Clarke, Jesse (2000-06-15). "Top aide’s sexual orientation hurts leadership candidate". Xtra!. http://archives.xtra.ca/Story.aspx?s=1408566. Retrieved 2007-07-08.
- ^ "June Callwood, Writer And Activist, Dead At 82". CityNews. 2007-04-14. http://www.citynews.ca/news/news_9799.aspx. Retrieved 2007-07-08.
- ^ Mitchel Raphael, "Mitchel Raphael on biker MPs". Maclean's, June 18, 2009.
- ^ Krishna Rau, "Gay leaders denounce Egale award to Jaime Watt". Xtra!, June 4, 2009.
- ^ Andrew Brett, "Egale's gay gaffe: Common Sense Revolutionary Jaime Watt cops Egale's top gay award and has activists stunned". Now (magazine), June 18, 2009.
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