Eleni Kounalakis

Eleni Kounalakis DEMDemocrat

Lieutenant Governor

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Eleni KounalakisDEMDemocrat Lieutenant Governor
58
Years of Age
5
Years of Experience
CAResidence (state)

Eleni Kounalakis (née Tsakopoulos; born March 3, 1966) is an American politician, businesswoman, and diplomat who is the 50th lieutenant governor of California, elected in 2018. A Democrat, she is the first woman elected to the office and was United States Ambassador to Hungary from 2010 to 2013. In 2019, Kounalakis became lieutenant governor of California, after winning the 2018 election. On April 24, 2023, Kounalakis announced her candidacy for governor of California in the 2026 California gubernatorial election.

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Education5 - 5 of 3
University of California at Berkeley
MBA
1990 - 1992
Dartmouth College
BA English Language/Literature
1985 - 1989
American College of Greece
Honorary Doctorate of Laws
Past Positions1 - 9 of 9
Lieutenant Governor
State of California
2019 - Current
President
California State Senate
2019 - Current
Director
Association of American Ambassadors and a National Democratic Institute (NDI)
2017 - Current
Virtual Fellow
U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR)
2014 - 2017
Author
“Madam Ambassador, Three Years of Diplomacy, Dinner Parties and Democracy in Budapest” The New Press
2015
Chair
California Advisory Council for International Trade and Investment
2014 - Current
Ambassador to Hungary
United States Department of State
2010 - 2013
Project Manager
AKT Development
1992 - 2010
Staff Member
California Democratic Party
1992
Other Experience1 - 4 of 4
Former Member
California Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism
Former Member
San Francisco Port Commission
Former Member
California’s First 5 Commission
California's Representative
International Affairs and Trade, Governors Office of California
2019 - Current
People Also Viewed1 - 0 of 0
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