Eva Kaili facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Eva Kaili
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Εύα Καϊλή
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Kaili in 2016
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| 5th Vice President of the European Parliament | |
| In office 18 January 2022 – 13 December 2022 Serving with See list
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| President | Roberta Metsola |
| Succeeded by | Marc Angel |
| Member of the European Parliament for Greece | |
| In office 2 July 2014 – 16 July 2024 |
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| Preceded by | Anni Podimata |
| Member of the Hellenic Parliament | |
| In office 18 September 2007 – 9 May 2012 |
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| Succeeded by | Evangelos Venizelos |
| Constituency | Thessaloniki A |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 October 1978 Thessaloniki, Greece |
| Political party | PASOK (1992–2022) |
| Other political affiliations |
Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (2014–2022) |
| Domestic partner | Francesco Giorgi |
| Children | 1 |
| Alma mater | Aristotle University of Thessaloniki |
| Profession | Newscaster, politician |
Eva Kaili (born 26 October 1978) is a Greek politician. She was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2014 to 2024. She also served as one of the Vice Presidents of the European Parliament from January 2022 until December 2022. Before her time in European politics, she was a news presenter for a Greek TV channel.
In December 2022, she was arrested as part of an investigation into corruption. She was held for a few months before being released to house arrest. Later, she was fully released. Through her lawyers, Eva Kaili has said she is innocent of all charges.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Eva Kaili was born in October 1978 in Thessaloniki, Greece. Her parents are Maria Ignatiadou and Alexandros Kailis. She has a younger sister named Madalena.
Eva Kaili studied architecture and civil engineering at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. In 2001, she was the President of the School of Architecture Students' Association. She continued her studies at the University of Piraeus. There, she earned a Master of Arts degree in international and European affairs in 2008.
Career in Politics and Media
Becoming a Newscaster
Before her political career, Eva Kaili worked as a newscaster. She presented the news at MEGA Channel, a Greek television channel, from 2004 to 2007.
Early Political Steps
Eva Kaili joined the PASOK Youth group in 1992. This was a youth organization for a political party. In 2002, she was elected to the Thessaloniki City Council. At that time, she was the youngest person ever elected to this council.
Serving in the Greek Parliament
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In 2007, Eva Kaili was elected as a member of the Hellenic Parliament. This is the parliament of Greece. She represented the first district of Thessaloniki. She was the youngest Member of Parliament from the PASOK party at that time. She kept her seat in the parliament until 2012.
During her time in the Greek Parliament, Eva Kaili was part of several important committees. These included committees on cultural affairs, education, national defense, and foreign affairs. She also represented Greece in international parliamentary groups.
Working in the European Parliament
Eva Kaili was elected as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) in 2014. An MEP is a person elected to represent their country in the European Parliament. This parliament makes laws for the countries in the European Union. She was part of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats group until December 2022.
From 2019 to 2022, Eva Kaili led the Greek delegation for her political group. She focused on topics like new technologies, innovation, and business. She was the first woman to chair the European Parliament's Science and Technology Options Assessment body (STOA). She also chaired the Centre for Artificial Intelligence (C4AI).
In January 2022, Eva Kaili was elected as one of the fourteen Vice Presidents of the European Parliament. This is a very important leadership role. She was suspended from this role in December 2022 after her arrest. On December 13, 2022, the European Parliament voted to remove her from the Vice President position.
Investigations and Legal Matters
Corruption Investigation
On December 9, 2022, Eva Kaili was arrested by the Belgian Federal Police. This happened during an investigation into organized crime, corruption, and money laundering. The investigation was connected to efforts to influence decisions related to Qatar. Because she was an MEP, she had special protection called parliamentary immunity. However, investigators believed she was caught in the act of a crime, which allowed for her arrest.
After her arrest, Eva Kaili was suspended from her political group in the European Parliament and her national party. Several other people were also detained as part of the investigation. Investigators found a large amount of cash during searches.
Eva Kaili's lawyers have stated that she denies all charges against her. They also raised concerns about how she was treated during her initial arrest and questioning. In April 2023, she was released from prison and placed under house arrest with an electronic bracelet. This measure was lifted in May 2023, meaning she was no longer under house arrest.
In September 2023, her lawyers successfully requested an internal review. This review looked into how evidence against her was collected. In February 2024, Eva Kaili announced that she would not seek re-election as an MEP.
EU Budget Investigation
In April 2023, it was reported that Eva Kaili was facing another investigation. This one was about whether she and her former assistants might have faked trips and documents. The goal was to get money back from the European Union budget or to travel at the EU's expense. She was also investigated for possibly keeping parts of her assistants' salaries.
In February 2024, the European Parliament removed her immunity as an MEP for this case. This allowed Greek authorities to investigate whether she misused a significant amount of money from the EU budget. Eva Kaili denies all these charges as well.
Political Challenges
Even before her arrest, Eva Kaili sometimes had different views from her own political party, PASOK. She sometimes took positions that were more similar to other Greek conservative parties. After her arrest, the leader of PASOK said she would not be a candidate for their party again.
Personal Life
Eva Kaili and her partner, Francesco Giorgi, have a daughter. Their daughter was born in 2021.
See also
In Spanish: Eva Kaili para niños
