James co-founded one of Canada's largest and longest lasting wargaming clubs.  He also co-founded the Mount Royal Village Chess & Games Club in partnership with The History Makers.  He has successfully competed at many national and international strategy competitions over 30 years and was a regional Chess Champion.

James also served as an Executive Assistant to a Canadian Member of Parliament for over 7 years.  He was a founding member of Canadian for Military Preparedness and has been an advocate on military issues.  He has put on training programs with the Canadian military, the University of Calgary, Fort Calgary, the Glenbow Museum, Calgary Highland Games, The Military Museum (formerly the Museum of the Regiments), the Royal Canadian Legion and Community Colleges.  James has written several articles for magazines such as: The General, The Wargamer, The Canadian Wargamers Journal, etc. He lead tours of many battlefield sites across Europe (including Waterloo and Juno Beach) and North America (including Gettysburg and Lundy's Lane) and participated in anniversary services with his father Stephen Istvanffy (a World War II veteran) in Belgium and Holland. James also regularly speaks to veterans and their associations. He serves as a Judge for the Heritage Fair and at many debating competitions.

James Istvanffy has worked on over 40 election campaigns and been involved in party politics for over 30 years. He was a Youth delegate to the 1982 Progressive Conservative National Convention in Winnipeg. James volunteered in several Progressive Conservative campaigns both provincially and federally. In 1988 he started supporting the Reform Party of Canada. In 1990, he formally joined that party volunteered for years promoting the Reform movement eventually working at the Reform Party National Office prior to the 1997 election. In July 1997 James was asked to manage the Constituency Office for a Member of Parliament. He served as an Office Manager and Constituency Assistant and then as Executive Assistant for a Reform MP, then a Canadian Alliance MP, then a Conservative MP. He was a Deputy Returning Officer for the Canadian Alliance Leadership Vote and the Alliance-PC Merger Vote. James was the Chief Returning Officer for the Canadian Alliance Party Election of National Councilors. He was elected as the Vice President of Constituency Associations for the Progressive Conservative Party, Conservative Party of Canada and the Canadian Alliance. James served as a Deputy Returning Officer in Federal and Provincial Elections and organized Policy Conferences, chaired debates and policy sessions over many years. He organized several Model Parliaments, Model United Nations and Diplomacy Tournaments and was elected as the Vice President of his Community Association. James assisted in the election campaigns of Preston Manning (1988-2000), Ralph Klein (1993-1999) and Stephen Harper (2001-2004). He was elected as a Director for the Federation of Calgary Communities and served as President of the Laissez-Faire Club (promoting free markets and free minds) and as an Executive Assistant to the N. Eldon Tanner Management Association. James was elected at the Vice President of the Alberta Alliance Party and served as a party organizer in the 2004 Provincial Election. He was a Vice-President of the Junior Chamber of Commerce in Calgary and served on the Calgary-Quebec Exchange Committee and represented Calgary during the Quebec City Winter Carnival. James was a candidate for Alderman in the City of Calgary (1998, 2001 and 2007) and a candidate for the Alberta Legislature (1994).

James Istvanffy and his wife Toni have three children (John, Anna and Benjamin). We enjoy family activities like swimming, cycling, watching Dizney movies and playing games.