Jim Nicholson (politician)

James Frederick Nicholson (born 29 January 1945) is a Northern Ireland Ulster Unionist Party politician, who is currently a Member of the European Parliament (MEP).

Career

Nicholson was born in 1945 in Armagh, Northern Ireland. Educated locally, he later worked as a farmer on the family farm. He joined the Ulster Unionist Party in the early 1970s and was the Secretary/Organiser of Mid-South Armagh Unionist Association from 1973 to 1983. He was elected to his first public office in 1976 as a member of Armagh council; he served until 1997 and was chairman of the council in 1994–95.

Westminster

Nicholson was elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Newry and Armagh in the 1983 general election for the UUP. At Westminster, he served on the Agriculture Select Committee. Along with all other unionist MPs, he resigned from the House of Commons in December 1985 as part of a wider protest against the Anglo-Irish Agreement of that year and to secure a renewed mandate from their electors. A by-election to fill his seat took place in January 1986.

James Nicholson

James Nicholson or Jim Nicholson may refer to:

Jim Nicholson (Secretary of Veterans Affairs)

Robert James "Jim" Nicholson (born February 4, 1938) is an attorney, real estate developer, and a former Republican Party chairman. He was the United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs from January 26, 2005 until October 1, 2007.

Personal life

Nicholson was born on a farm near Struble, Iowa. Nicholson has characterized his childhood as "growing up dirt poor in a tenant house without plumbing and sometimes without food". He is the brother of retired Army General John W. Nicholson.

Nicholson has a Master's degree in Public Policy from Columbia University. He received a law degree from the University of Denver College of Law in 1972.

Nicholson is married to the former Suzanne Marie Ferrell of Highland Falls, New York, who is an accomplished artist. They are the parents of three children.

Military service

He is a 1961 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York and served eight years in active duty. He was a paratrooper and Ranger-qualified Army officer. He fought in the Vietnam War, where he earned the Bronze Star, Combat Infantryman Badge, the Meritorious Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Cross of Gallantry and two Air Medals. After thirty years of military service he retired in 1991 with the rank of Colonel.

Jim Nicholson (American football)

James Burton "Jim" Nicholson, Jr. (born February 28, 1949 in Honolulu, Hawaii) is a former professional American football offensive tackle in the National Football League. He played for the Kansas City Chiefs (1974–1979) and the San Francisco 49ers (1981).

Nicholson also appeared in Robert Aldrich's 1974 football comedy, The Longest Yard as Ice Man.

References