Cecil Calvert is a Unionist politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

, and long-serving councillor on Lisburn City Council

Lisburn City Council

Lisburn City Council is a district council covering an area partly in County Antrim and partly in County Down in Northern Ireland. The council is the second largest in the Belfast Metropolitan Area. Council headquarters are in the city of Lisburn, upon which was conferred city status in May 2002 as...

.

Calvert worked for the B Specials Constabulary and as a farmer

Farmer

A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, who raises living organisms for food or raw materials, generally including livestock husbandry and growing crops, such as produce and grain...

 before joining the Democratic Unionist Party

Democratic Unionist Party

The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...

 (DUP). In 1985, he was elected to Lisburn Borough Council, representing Killultagh. He held his seat at each subsequent election, serving as Mayor of Lisburn in 2004 - 05.

Calvert was elected to the Northern Ireland Forum

Northern Ireland Forum

The Northern Ireland Forum was a body set up in 1996 as part of a process of negotiations that eventually led to the Belfast Agreement in 1998....

, representing Lagan Valley

Lagan Valley (Assembly constituency)

Lagan Valley is a constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.The seat was first used for a Northern Ireland-only election for the Northern Ireland Forum in 1996. Since 1998, it has elected members to the current Assembly....

, but failed to take a seat at the Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1998

Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1998

-Seats summary:-Details:Although the SDLP won the most first preference votes, the Ulster Unionists won the most seats in the Assembly. This has been attributed to several reasons, including:...

.

Calvert carried a Union Jack during a St Patrick's Day parade in Seattle in 2005

In June 2007, Calvert resigned from the DUP, objecting to the party's decision to enter government with Sinn Féin

Sinn Féin

Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...

. He subsequently joined Traditional Unionist Voice

Traditional Unionist Voice

Traditional Unionist Voice is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland founded on 7 December 2007, as an anti-St Andrews Agreement splinter group from the Democratic Unionist Party . Its first and current leader is Jim Allister who, until 2009, sat as an independent Member of the European...

(TUV) but resigned in March 2011.