Eleni Kounalakis Explained

Eleni Kounalakis
Office:50th Lieutenant Governor of California
Governor:Gavin Newsom
Term Start:January 7, 2019
Predecessor:Gavin Newsom
Ambassador From1:United States
Country1:Hungary
President1:Barack Obama
Term Start1:January 11, 2010
Term End1:July 20, 2013
Predecessor1:April H. Foley
Successor1:Colleen Bell
Birth Name:Eleni Tsakopoulos
Birth Date:3 March 1966
Birth Place:Sacramento, California, U.S.
Party:Democratic
Children:2
Relatives:Angelo Tsakopoulos (father)
George Tsakopoulos (uncle)
George Demos (brother-in-law)
Education:Dartmouth College (BA)
University of California, Berkeley (MBA)
Signature:Eleni Kounalakis Signature.png

Eleni Kounalakis (née Tsakopoulos; born March 3, 1966) is an American politician, businesswoman, and diplomat serving as the 50th lieutenant governor of California since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, she is the first woman and the first Greek American elected to the office. She previously served as the United States Ambassador to Hungary from 2010 to 2013 under President Barack Obama.

On April 24, 2023, Kounalakis announced her candidacy for governor of California in the 2026 California gubernatorial election.[1] [2]

Early life

Eleni Kounalakis is the daughter of Angelo Tsakopoulos, a Sacramento developer.[3] Kounalakis is of Greek descent and grew up a member of the Greek Orthodox Church.[4]

Kounalakis received her undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College and a Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley's Haas School of Business.[5]

Career

Private career

Before 2009, Kounalakis was President of AKT Development Corporation, a family-owned real estate, farming, ranching, water,[6] minerals, building, land development and property investment company,[7] based in Sacramento, California, founded by Angelo K Tsakopoulos, her father, in 1964.[8] [9]

Kounalakis and her husband, print and broadcast journalist Markos Kounalakis, founded two university chairs in Hellenic studies, the Markos and Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis chair at Georgetown University,[10] held by the scholar of late Classical and early Hellenistic Greek literature, Alexander Sens, and the Tsakopoulos Kounalakis chair in honor of Constantine Mitsotakis at Stanford University, held by Josiah Ober. Both chairs focus on the understanding of the origins of Athenian democracy. They also established the Tsakopoulos Kounalakis lecture series at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars to focus on democracy and international relations.[11]

Kounalakis served for nearly ten years as a Trustee of the World Council of Religions for Peace. In recognition for her work with the WCRP, she was awarded the medal of St. Paul, the Greek Orthodox Church of America's highest honor.[12] San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom appointed her to serve as a Trustee of the War Memorial and Performing Arts Center. San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee appointed her to serve on the Port Commission Board.[13]

Political career

Kounalakis served four times as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention and as an at-large member of the California State Democratic Central Committee. She also served as a member of the First 5 California Commission, and the California Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism.[14] She served as a Trustee of Robert Redford's Sundance Preserve and on the Conservation Fund's National Forum on Children and Nature. She is also a senior advisor at Albright Stonebridge Group.[15]

In 2009, Kounalakis accepted President Barack Obama's nomination to an ambassadorship.[16]

On April 24, 2017, Kounalakis announced her bid for the office of Lieutenant Governor of California in the 2018 election. After her candidacy announcement, she visited all 58 counties in California during her campaign. Her grassroots campaign earned the recognition of Time magazine[17] for engaging hundreds of volunteers to text over 1 million voters before Election Day. She came in first place on June 5, 2018, in the top-two statewide primary; Democratic State Senator Ed Hernandez placed second.[18] On November 6, Kounalakis was elected by a 56.6% to 43.3% margin against her opponent, becoming the first female elected Lieutenant Governor of California in history; Mona Pasquil was appointed in an acting capacity in 2009 following the resignation of John Garamendi but was not elected to the post.[19] [20] Kounalakis and Governor-elect Gavin Newsom took office on January 7, 2019.[21]

Kounalakis was re-elected lieutenant governor in 2022.[22] She announced her candidacy for governor in the 2026 election on April 24, 2023.[23]

Kounalakis serves on the Regents of the University of California (the lieutenant governor of California holds one seat). In September 2023, she voted to delay approval of an eight-story, 545-bed dorm for UCLA students in Los Angeles's affluent Westwood neighborhood due to concerns of undersized dorms.[24] The board approved the project in November 2023.[25] Following her efforts to disqualify Donald Trump from the 2024 presidential election, she was doxxed and swatted, part of a series of similar events nationwide.[26]

Personal life

Eleni Tsakopoulos married Markos Kounalakis in 2000.[27] They have two sons.[28]

In 2011, she received an Honorary Doctor of Law from the American College of Greece.[29]

Electoral history

2022

See also

External links

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Notes and References

  1. News: Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis announces early bid in 2026 California governor's race . 1 December 2023 . . 24 April 2023.
  2. News: Eleni Kounalakis first to launch campaign for California governor in 2026 . 1 December 2023 . . 24 April 2023 . en.
  3. News: Candidate, her father have spent millions to elect her California's lieutenant governor. The Sacramento Bee. June 3, 2018. Luna. Taryn. November 12, 2018.
  4. Web site: Say hello to Eleni Kounalakis. 2018-11-27. Capitol Weekly. en-US. 2019-10-30.
  5. Berkeley-Haas. The Magazine of the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley. March 15, 2013. October 21, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161021001314/http://www.haas.berkeley.edu/groups/pubs/berkeleyhaas/summer2012/yhn01.html. dead.
  6. Web site: Kyriakos Tsakopoulos . American Hellenic Institute . 1 December 2023.
  7. News: Anderson . Mark . AKT Development sells Lennar 1,200 home sites in west Roseville . 1 December 2023 . bizjournals.com Sacramento Business Journal . October 1, 2018.
  8. Web site: 2023-04-12 . UC Irvine hosts California's lieutenant governor as it prepares to add student housing . Los Angeles Times . en-US.
  9. Web site: Land Developer to U.S. Ambassador . May 5, 2012 . Berkeley-Haas.
  10. Web site: Georgetown University Receives $1.2 Million Gift for Hellenic Studies Chair. June 26, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20140316181952/http://explore.georgetown.edu/news/?ID=389. March 16, 2014. dead.
  11. Web site: Southeast Europe Project Announces Scholars. Wilson Center. The project features the Tsakopoulos-Kounalakis Lecture Series as a forum for world leaders and distinguished scholars who study, understand, and manifest democracy and reason as classical Hellenism's vital contributions to contemporary statecraft and society..
  12. Web site: Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis Receives Greek Orthodox Church of America's Highest Honor. PSEKA.
  13. http://www.sfexaminer.com/mayor-ed-lees-port-commission-picks-sails-through-board-committee/ Mayor Ed Lee's Port Commission picks sails through board committee
  14. Web site: Appointed Members of the Legislative Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism. March 15, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130123075302/http://senweb03.senate.ca.gov/autism/members.html. January 23, 2013. dead.
  15. Web site: Eleni Tsakopoulos, Albright Stonebridge Group.
  16. President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts. National Archives. whitehouse.gov. October 9, 2009 .
  17. Why Politicians Are Texting You So Much — And It's Only the Beginning . Time . October 24, 2018 . Katy . Steinmetz.
  18. News: Eleni Kounalakis and Ed Hernandez advance to general election for lieutenant governor. Madeleine. Gregory. Sakura. Cannestra. June 6, 2018. The Daily Californian.
  19. Web site: 2018 California General Election Results. Election Results. November 13, 2018. June 10, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190610034444/https://vote.sos.ca.gov/returns/lieutenant-governor. dead.
  20. News: Eleni Kounalakis Wins California's Lieutenant Governor's Race. Ken . Palosi . November 7, 2018 . CBS.
  21. News: Eleni Kounalakis can carve out a meaningful role as lieutenant governor. It's in her genes. Los Angeles Times. George . Skelton. November 12, 2018. November 12, 2018.
  22. News: December 13, 2022 . California Lieutenant Governor Election Results 2022: Kounalakis Defeats Underwood Jacobs . . April 24, 2023.
  23. News: Cadelago . Christopher . April 24, 2023 . Eleni Kounalakis first to launch campaign for California governor in 2026 . . April 24, 2023.
  24. Web site: 2023-09-22 . How small is too small? UC Regents delay approval of new UCLA dorm, questioning room size . Los Angeles Times . en-US.
  25. Web site: As UCLA continues its push for affordable student housing, Chancellor Block is honored for efforts .
  26. Web site: Cadelago . Christopher . 2024-01-04 . California lieutenant governor 'swatted' after push to boot Trump from ballot . 2024-01-05 . POLITICO . en.
  27. Web site: Brinkerhoff . Noel . Ambassador to Hungary: Who is Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis? . AllGov . 26 November 2020.
  28. Web site: Meet Eleni. Eleni Kounalakis for California Lt. Governor.
  29. Web site: American College of Greece Commencement. DEREE.