Grahame was the SNP's candidate for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale in the 1992 UK General election, but failed to win the seat.

Grahame ran for Depute Leader of the Scottish National Party in the 2004 leadership election, but was defeated by Nicola Sturgeon.

[1] Christine Grahame was born on 9 September 1944 in Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, to a Scottish father and English mother.

After graduating, Grahame worked as a secondary teacher of English in a number of schools in Fife and Dumfries and Galloway.

After the election, she was reshuffled from chair of the Scottish Parliament's Health committee to Shadow Minister for Social Justice, generally seen by media commentators as an upwards shift.

[citation needed] In the 2011 Scottish Parliament election, Grahame won the redrawn seat of Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, defeating former Liberal Democrat finance spokesman Jeremy Purvis.

Grahame has named her continued support of this as one of her biggest achievements[11] and said on its opening "As someone who has campaigned for the return of the Waverley Line since 1999, it was an absolute privilege to be have finally traveled the length of the journey by rail, and to appreciate our wonderful countryside from a new perspective.

[13] Councillors had approved a £6m purpose built visitor centre at Tweedbank Railway Station, however Grahame contested that the business case was flawed and persuaded Scottish Government ministers to investigate this further before releasing the funding required to create it.

[20] A few days after the dropping of Megrahi's appeal against conviction and his release on compassionate grounds on 20 August 2009, Grahame wrote an op-ed article for The Independent saying she is convinced of his innocence: "He is not a saint, of course – he had a history with Libyan intelligence – but his hands are clean over Lockerbie.

"[21] Grahame has lodged several questions and motions on this in the Scottish Parliament[22] and continues to be involved with campaign groups on the matter.

Republicanism Grahame is a supporter of the political organisation Republic, a campaign to replace the British Monarchy with an elected head of state.

[23] In July 2009, Grahame snubbed Elizabeth II by checking her e-mails rather than attending the royal speech at Holyrood to mark the tenth anniversary of Scottish devolution.

The move drew some criticism from commentators and fellow MSPs, however on the BBC Radio Good Morning Scotland programme, Grahame stated: "I'm earning and working for my constituents far more than if I sit hypocritically in the chamber watching a monarch for an institution I do not support.