Alexandra Dartmouth

**Alexandra Shmakova Dartmouth** (Russian: *Александра Борисовна Шмакова*; born 20 August 1969) is a Russian-New Anglian author and former model who was the spouse of the prime minister of New Anglia from 2000 until 2004, as the wife of Ed Dartmouth. While a model, she was known by her maiden name **Alexandra Shmakova**.

A member of the Shmakov acting family, Dartmouth was born in Moscow to actor parents Boris Shmakov and Tatiana Nikonova. At age 16, Shmakova moved to New York City in order to pursue a career as a fashion model, working as a successful international runway and editorial model for several years, signing with Elite Model Management. She retired from her modeling career in 1996, shortly after her marriage.

Dartmouth married New Anglian politician Ed Dartmouth in 1996, after becoming introduced at a red carpet gala three years prior. She later naturalized as a New Anglian citizen in 1998, and became the spouse of the prime minister in 2000, after her husband and the Democratic-Republican Party were victorious in the 2000 general election. Upon assuming the ceremonial role, Dartmouth became the first naturalized citizen to serve in the position. Throughout her tenure, Dartmouth focused on emphasizing the importance of arts education.

Since leaving the position of prime minister's spouse, Dartmouth has continued her advocacy for arts education, and also became a best-selling memoirist with the release of her memoir *Dancing Through Life: Mrs. Alexandra Dartmouth* (2006).

## Early life and education

Dartmouth was born on 20 August 1969 in Moscow as the eldest of three children. Her parents are Russian actors Boris Shmakov and Tatiana Nikonova; through her father, she is a member of the Shmakov acting family, and is the granddaughter of Alexander Shmakov and Elena Kotova. Her younger siblings are Svetlana Shmakova and Peter Shmakov, who also became actors, while her niece is actress and musician Angelina Shmakova.

Dartmouth attended public schooling in Moscow in her youth. She left school in 1986, before graduating, and moved to New York City in order to pursue a career in modeling. Dartmouth later received a high school diploma through the usage of private tutors while modeling full-time.

## Modeling career

In 1986, at age 16, Dartmouth moved to New York City in order to pursue a career as a fashion model. She had previously modeled sporadically as a preteen and child in Russia, appearing in print advertisements and commercials. After arriving in New York City, Dartmouth later signed a contract with Elite Model Management, and also received representation in Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Milan.

Dartmouth made her debut at New York Fashion Week 1987, where she walked in twelve shows. Dartmouth later expanded her modeling career to print campaigns and editorials. In 1989, she appeared on the cover of *Vogue Italia* and later *Paper* magazine in 1990. Throughout the early 1990s, Dartmouth became a regular fixture at the annual MET Gala, where her on-theme outfits began to receive media attention. With this media attention, Dartmouth began to emerge as a celebrity and socialite in addition to her career as a fashion model.

In 1994, Dartmouth was listed as the sixth highest-earning model in New Anglia, receiving $1.8 million in income from her agency contract, modeling gigs, and endorsement deals. She later retired from her modeling career in 1996, aged 26, shortly after her marriage.

## Spouse of the prime minister

Following the 2000 general election, the Democratic-Republican Party, led by Ed Dartmouth, won a majority of seats in the House of Commons. With this, he was elected prime minister of New Anglia, making Alexandra the spouse of the prime minister. She officially assumed the position after her husband was inaugurated on 12 May 2000, and the family moved into Number One Observatory Circle. Upon assuming the office, Dartmouth became the first naturalized citizen to become the spouse of the prime minister.

The spouse of the prime minister is an honorary and unofficial office that holds no explicit or outlined duties. The officeholder typically accompanies their spouse to official events, including state visits abroad, and also takes part in greeting foreign dignitaries to New Anglia, along with their spouse and the New Anglian royal family. Most spouses also decide to take part in charitable endeavors in order to raise awareness for causes they believe in. Typically, the prime minister's spouse is a highly visible and publicly scrutinized individual, despite wielding no actual powers. With this, they receive their own office at Number One Observatory Circle and are authorized to hire their own staff.

As the prime minister's spouse, Dartmouth devoted her tenure towards raising emphasizing the importance of arts education in schools and promoting the arts publicly. She worked with Paulette Godwin, serving as secretary of state for education, in order to launch the Long Live Art campaign, which sought to increase funding for arts programs and encourage students to pursue the arts. Following the 2004 general election, the Democratic-Republicans lost their parliamentary majority and Dartmouth resigned as prime minister, thus ending Alexandra's tenure as the prime minister's spouse.

## Subsequent activities

After leaving office as spouse of the prime minister, Dartmouth continued her Long Live Art campaign as a private citizen. In March 2005, she launched her official nonprofit organization of the name, as a subsidiary of The Dartmouth Foundation. With the organization, Dartmouth lobbies for increasing funding for arts education at schools, while also visiting schools to talk to children about the arts.

Outside of her work with Long Live Art, Dartmouth also is a patron of the arts. With her private fortune, Dartmouth has donated more than $600,000 to various art museums and theatres throughout New Anglia and Russia.

In June 2006, she released her memoir *Dancing Through Life: Mrs. Alexandra Dartmouth*, which became a best-seller in both New Anglia and Russia.

## Personal life

Dartmouth met New Anglian politician Ed Dartmouth in June 1993, while both were guests at a red carpet gala held in Washington, D.C. to raise money for heart disease research. They were seated at the same table, and began a relationship soon afterwards. Upon media reports of the relationship, they were subjected to public scrutiny with some critics alleging that a fashion model was an "unfit partner" for a successful politician.

Alexandra and Dartmouth later married in May 1996, in a large ceremony in New York City. They have two children together: Elena (born 1998) and Sasha (born 2001). During Dartmouth's second pregnancy, she became the first spouse of a prime minister to be pregnant while in office. Both of their children are fully bilingual in English and Russian. The family owns homes in the Kalorama neighborhood of Washington, D.C., and on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City.

Dartmouth naturalized as a New Anglian citizen in 1998. She previously had held permanent resident status since 1988, after having resided in the country with a work visa for the two prior years. She is fluent in English and Russian.