Eleni Kounalakis Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Eleni Kounalakis
Kounalakis in 2025

50th Lieutenant Governor of California
Incumbent
Assumed office January 7, 2019
Governor	Gavin Newsom
Preceded by	Gavin Newsom
United States Ambassador to Hungary
In office January 11, 2010 – July 20, 2013
President	Barack Obama
Preceded by	April H. Foley
Succeeded by	Colleen Bell

Personal details
Born	Eleni Tsakopoulos (1966-03-03) March 3, 1966 (age 59) Sacramento, California, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Markos Kounalakis (m. 2000)
Children	2
Relatives	Angelo Tsakopoulos (father) George Tsakopoulos (uncle) George Demos (brother-in-law)
Education	Dartmouth College (BA) University of California, Berkeley (MBA)
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Eleni Kounalakis (born March 3, 1966) is an American politician and businesswoman. She has been the 50th lieutenant governor of California since 2019. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Kounalakis is the first Greek American and the first woman to be elected to this important role.

She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College. Later, she received a Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley. After finishing her studies, she worked for a real estate company. Her father, Angelo Tsakopoulos, started this company. She became the president of the company in 2010.

From 2010 to 2013, President Barack Obama chose her to be the United States Ambassador to Hungary. In 2018, she was elected lieutenant governor of California. She was reelected in 2022. In April 2023, Kounalakis announced she would run for governor of California in the 2026 election.

Early Life and Education
Career Highlights
- Working in Business
- Political Journey
Personal Life
Images for kids
See also

Early Life and Education

Eleni Kounalakis is the daughter of Angelo Tsakopoulos. He was a real estate developer in Sacramento. Eleni is of Greek descent. She grew up as a member of the Greek Orthodox Church.

She earned her first college degree from Dartmouth College. She then received her Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of California, Berkeley's Haas School of Business.

Career Highlights

Kounalakis as U.S. ambassador

Working in Business

Before 2009, Kounalakis was the President of AKT Development Corporation. This was her family's company in Sacramento, California. The company worked in real estate, farming, and land development. Her father, Angelo K Tsakopoulos, started it in 1964.

Eleni and her husband, Markos Kounalakis, have supported education. They helped create two special study programs about Greek culture at universities. One is at Georgetown University and the other at Stanford University. These programs help people learn about the beginnings of Athenian democracy. They also started a lecture series at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. This series focuses on democracy and how countries interact.

Kounalakis was a trustee for the World Council of Religions for Peace for almost ten years. She received a special award, the St. Paul medal, for her work. This is the highest honor from the Greek Orthodox Church of America. She also served on boards for the War Memorial and Performing Arts Center and the Port Commission Board in San Francisco.

Political Journey

Kounalakis has been involved in politics for a long time. She was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention four times. She also served on several state commissions in California. These included the First 5 California Commission and the California Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism.

In 2009, President Barack Obama asked her to become an ambassador. She accepted this important role.

On April 24, 2017, Kounalakis announced she would run for Lieutenant Governor of California. During her campaign, she visited all 58 counties in California. Her campaign encouraged many volunteers to text over 1 million voters. In the primary election on June 5, 2018, she came in first place. On November 6, she won the election. She became the first woman ever elected Lieutenant Governor of California. She and Governor Gavin Newsom started their terms on January 7, 2019.

Kounalakis was re-elected as lieutenant governor in 2022. On April 24, 2023, she announced her plan to run for Governor of California in the 2026 election.

As lieutenant governor, Kounalakis serves on the Regents of the University of California. In September 2023, she voted on a plan for a new dorm at UCLA. The board approved the project in November 2023.

After she worked to remove Donald Trump from the 2024 presidential election ballot, she faced some challenges. She was targeted with online harassment and false emergency calls to her home. These were part of similar events happening to politicians across the country.

Personal Life

Eleni Tsakopoulos married Markos Kounalakis in 2000. They have two sons together.

In 2011, she received an honorary Doctor of Law degree from the American College of Greece. She is Greek Orthodox. She received the St. Paul Medal, which is the highest honor from the Greek Orthodox Church of America.