If there is ever a biography about David Cameron, the chances are high that one would come across the name Steve Hilton. Steve Hilton is the man behind most of Cameron’s strategy and speeches. A workaholic, he stayed away from the limelight but was always seen engaged with matters at 10, Downing Street.

Early Life

Steve Hilton was born on August 25, 1969, in the United Kingdom. He’s a Hungarian by birth and is a son of Hungarian refugees called Hircksac. The Hircksac’s fled their country during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and took refuge in Great Britain. The Hircksac’s anglicized their names after staying in the Hotel Hilton in Great Britain.

Hilton’s family lived in poverty and he went to the Christ School in Sussex, where the fees for the poor were paid by the charitable trust. Steve’s father, Istvan, is one of the well-known players of Ice Hockey in Europe and he was a goaltender for the Hungarian Ice Hockey team. After fleeing to Britain, the couple worked at Heathrow airport, but soon got divorced when he was five years old.

Life after Graduation

Upon graduating, Steve Hilton landed a job with the British political party, Conservative party’s headquarters, the ‘Conservative Campaign Headquarters’. The friendship between David Cameron and Steve Hilton began here and it was also where Hilton met his future wife Rachel Whetstone. He collaborated with the party’s advertising agency Saatchi and Saatchi during that time for campaigns. David Cameron and Hilton worked together when the Conservative Party saw an unexpected win in the elections in 1992. He went back to the advertising agency and later quit that too, to start on his own.

Steve Hilton established a consultancy called ‘Good Business’ which advised companies to be socially responsible and to become good for the world. He saw huge success with his business and some of his clientele included the likes of Coca-Cola and McDonald’s. Good Business offered discussions like how companies could benefit from social programs which gained widespread popularity.

But his political career didn’t cease yet, as he came back into the arena in 1997. However, it didn’t turn out to be a right welcome for Hilton as his ‘Demon Eyes’ campaign about Tony Blair didn’t go well with the people. The Conservative party faced enough criticism for this work. Later on, he tried for the Tory seat of Surrey Heath but was defeated by another party member Micheal Cove.

His next assignment was to help his friend win the Prime Minister elections and find his seat in 10 Downing Street. Although he wasn’t given a titled post, he worked as a shadowy figure trying to ensure Cameron resides inside 10 Downing Street. But he was paid a salary of 180,000 pounds.

At present, he is the CEO of CrowdPac, a political data technology start-up.

Mr. and Mrs. Hilton

Steve Hilton met Rachel Whetstone at the Conservative Campaign Headquarters. The marriage of Steve and Rachel took place in the year 2008. They have a son named Ben who was christened on their wedding day. Rachel Whetstone is currently the Vice President of Communications at Facebook. The couple now lives in California.