Una James

**Una Fionnula James** (born 27 March 1957) is a Hawaiian politician, activist, and environmentalist who has served as Leader of the Green Party since 2007. She was first elected to the National Assembly of Hawaii in 2000.

James was born and raised in California, and later immigrated to Hawaii as an international student to attend the University of Hawaii – Manoa in 1975. After graduating in 1979 with a dual degree in environmental studies and sociology, James remained in Hawaii and began working with various non-governmental organizations dedicated to environmentalism. James became active in politics after becoming a Hawaiian citizen in 1985, volunteering with the Green Party in rallies and events. She began working for the party in a full-time paid position in 1991, before leaving in 2000 to begin her political career.

James's political career began after being included on the Green Party ticket for the 2000 Hawaiian general election. The party ended up winning enough seats in the National Assembly, and James was elected to parliament. Like many other Green MPs, James became an instrumental swing vote in parliament known for working across the aisle. Her backing on controversial policies became highly influential, due to the nonpartisan mindset that many Green politicians come with. Following the retirement of Party Leader Fred Cho in 2007, James was declared new Party Leader after being unopposed in the leadership contest. She led the party to a defeat in the 2010 election, losing all but one of their seats, but rebounded in the 2015 election after picking up three more seats.

## Early life and family

James was born on 27 March 1957 in Sunnyvale, Santa Cruz, a suburb of San Francisco, to parents Gregory and Mary-Louise James (née *Finnegan*). She is of an Irish background; her father is a Protestant who emigrated from Northern Ireland in the 1930s, while her mother comes from a Catholic family originally from Galway. James has stated that her parents were not permitted by their parents to marry due to their religious differences, but they did so anyways and James has never met her grandparents because of this conflict. Gregory worked in the technology industry, while Mary-Louise was a psychiatric nurse. James grew up in an upper-middle class family as the eldest of three daughters; her younger sisters include Ellis, born  (1960-02-13) 13 February 1960 (age 63), and Fiona, born  (1964-12-18) 18 December 1964 (age 59).

## Education and early career

James attended public schooling Sunnyvale, beginning her education in 1963. She later began high school at Fremont High School in 1971. While in high school, James was stereotyped as a "hippie" by other students. She was the president of her school's environmental club during her senior year, and was also active on the debate team and in art club. She graduated from high school in 1975, and enrolled in the University of Hawaii – Manoa. James immigrated to Hawaii and settled in Honolulu to begin university as an international student, where she completed a dual major in environmental studies and sociology in 1979.

After completing her degree, James's student visa was no longer effective and she returned to California to work as a waitress for six months. James returned to Hawaii shortly afterwards, receiving a work visa and permanent residence permit after receiving a job at a Honolulu-based non-governmental organization specializing in environmental advocacy. James's first foray into politics came in 1985, when she began volunteering with the Green Party in rallies and events. She began working for the party in a full-time paid position in 1991, before leaving in 2000 to begin her political career.

## Political career

### National Assembly

In 1999, James was invited by the Green Party to be included on their ticket for the 2000 Hawaiian general election. The party ultimately won enough seats for James to be seated, and she became a member of the National Assembly. Like many other Green MPs, James became an instrumental swing vote in parliament known for working across the aisle. Her backing on controversial policies became highly influential, due to the nonpartisan mindset that many Green politicians come with.

### Leader of the Green Party

Following the retirement of Party Leader Fred Cho in 2007, James was declared new Party Leader after being unopposed in the leadership contest. She led the party to a defeat in the 2010 election, losing all but one of their seats, but rebounded in the 2015 election after picking up three more seats.

## Personal life

James is quadra-citizen; she holds citizenship to California, Hawaii, the United Kingdom, and Ireland. James became a citizen of California, Ireland, and the United Kingdom at birth; her British and Irish citizenships were granted to her via descent from her father, who was a citizen of both. James naturalized as a Hawaiian citizen in 1985. She has stated that she was raised "neither fully Catholic nor fully Protestant, but with elements of both", but no longer identifies with Christianity. She has called herself both agnostic and "spiritual but not religious".

In 2012, James came out in an open letter as bisexual. She stated that she has had relationships with both men and women in her life, and that she simply cannot choose one over the other. This made James the first openly LGBT person to lead a parliamentary political party in Hawaii. She has never married and has no children. James has resided in the Ala Moana neighborhood in Honolulu since the 1990s.