James Selfe is a South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

n politician, currently a Member of Parliament

Parliament of South Africa

The Parliament of South Africa is South Africa's legislature and under the country's current Constitution is composed of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces....

 for the opposition Democratic Alliance, and the party's Federal Executive Chairperson. He is also presently the party's Shadow Minister of Correctional Services.

Education and Early Career

Selfe was born in Pretoria, and attended Diocesan College

Diocesan College

The Diocesan College, or Bishops as it is more commonly known, is an independent, all-boys school situated in the suburb of Rondebosch in Cape Town, South Africa...

 and the University of Cape Town

University of Cape Town

The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...

. After earning a Master's Degree, Selfe worked between 1979 and 1988 as a researcher for the Progressive Federal Party

Progressive Federal Party

The Progressive Federal Party was a South African political party formed in 1977. It advocated power-sharing in South Africa through a federal constitution, in place of apartheid...

, the forerunner to today's Democratic Alliance. He became the party's communications director in 1988, and a member of the President's Council a year later. In 1992 he became an executive director of the party.

Parliamentarian

Selfe was elected to the Senate - later National Council of Provinces

National Council of Provinces

The National Council of Provinces is the upper house of the Parliament of South Africa under the constitution which came into full effect in 1997...

 - in 1994. In 1999 he stayed in parliament, but moved to the National Assembly

National Assembly of South Africa

The National Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of South Africa, located in Cape Town, Western Cape Province. It consists of no fewer than 350 and no more than 400 members...

. He has remained a member of parliament since then, and is currently the party's correctional services spokesperson, in addition to being chair of the DA Federal Executive.

In April 2009, Selfe filed the DA's founding affidavit in the Pretoria High Court

High Court of South Africa

The High Courts are superior courts of law in South Africa. The courts were created in 1996 on the adoption of the Constitution of South Africa, and inherited the jurisdiction of the provincial and local divisions of the former Supreme Court of South Africa...

 for a judicial review of the National Prosecuting Authority

National Prosecuting Authority

The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa , created a single National Prosecution Authority , which is governed by the National Prosecuting Authority Act...

's decision to drop charges against presidential front runner Jacob Zuma

Jacob Zuma

Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma is the President of South Africa, elected by parliament following his party's victory in the 2009 general election....

.

Offices held