Dora Bakoyannis

Theodora "Dora" Bakoyanni (; née Mitsotaki, born May 6, 1954) is a Greek politician. From 2006 to 2009 she was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece. She was also the Mayor of Athens from 2003 to 2006, becoming the city's first female mayor. She was also the Minister for Culture of Greece from 1992 to 1993.

Early life
Bakoyannis was born in Athens in 1954. She is the oldest of four children of the veteran Greek politician Konstantinos Mitsotakis, former Prime Minister of Greece. Her younger brother Kyriakos, is the current Prime Minister of Greece.

Political career
Mayoralty of Athens
On December 13, 2002, while serving as mayor-elect of Athens, an assassination attempt was made on her. She took office in January 2003, becoming the city's first female mayor.

During her time as mayor, the city hosted the Olympic Games, making her the first woman to serve as mayor of a city hosting the Olympics. In 2005 she was awarded the World Mayor Prize.

Parliamentary career
Bakoyannis was an independent member of the Hellenic Parliament representing unofficially Democratic Alliance, the political party she founded in 2010. She was expelled from the opposition New Democracy party because she voted against the party. Bakoyannis rejoined New Democracy on 21 May 2012.

Personal life
In December 1974, she married journalist Pavlos Bakoyannis and later gave birth to their two children, Alexia and Kostas. On 26 September 1989, her husband, who had been elected a member of the Hellenic Parliament, was assassinated by members of the terrorist group Revolutionary Organization 17 November. She later married businessman Isidoros Kouvelos in 1998.

In October 2021, Bakoyannis revealed that she had been diagnosed with multiple myeloma.

References

Other websites

Dora Bakoyannis' biography in the Wayback Archive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website 

Category:1954 births
Category:Living people
Category:Mayors of Athens
Category:Foreign ministers of Greece