Apostolos Tzitzikostas will be the new Commissioner for Greece at the Commission. As stated by Pavlos Marinakis during the briefing for political reporters: “Greece will propose Apostolos Tzitzikostas for the Commissioner position in the new European Commission. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has already informed President von der Leyen about this.”
The regional governor of Central Macedonia is a person with experience in institutional roles, both in Greece and in Europe, where he was elected President of the European Committee of the Regions in 2020. At the same time, the regional governor of Central Macedonia is a young man who has been elected three times with votes exceeding 50%.
It is noted that at 18:00, the Prime Minister will meet Mr. Tzitzikostas at the Maximos Mansion.
A few words about Apostolos Tzitzikostas
Apostolos Tzitzikostas was born on September 2, 1978. He studied Political Science, Foreign Policy, and Diplomacy at Georgetown University in Washington. He worked in the office of the Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the US Congress. He obtained a Master’s degree in European Public Administration and Economics from University College London.
In 2002, he established his own business in Thessaloniki in the field of production, processing, and standardization of dairy products based on organic standards. He is married to entrepreneur Eleanna Vlachou and they have two children.
Political career
In the national elections of September 2007, he was elected as a Member of Parliament for the A’ Electoral District of Thessaloniki. In the Regional Elections of November 2010, he was elected Deputy Regional Governor of Thessaloniki. In the Regional Elections of May 2014, he was elected Regional Governor of Central Macedonia. He was re-elected as Regional Governor of Central Macedonia in the elections of May 2019 and October 2023. In November 2019, he was elected President of the Association of Regional Authorities of Greece and was re-elected President in February 2024.
Since 2015, he has been a member of the European Committee of the Regions. In July 2017, he was elected Head of the Greek Delegation and Vice-President of the European Committee of the Regions. In February 2020, he was elected President of the European Committee of the Regions and is the first Greek to be elected head of a European institution.
Specifically, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, in the parliamentary elections of September 16, 2007, was elected as a member of parliament receiving 29,166 votes on the New Democracy ballot in the A’ Electoral District of Thessaloniki.
As a member of parliament, he served as Secretary of the Hellenic Parliament, a member of the Standing Committee on National Defense and Foreign Affairs, and the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs in the Hellenic Parliament. Additionally, he was a member of the Special Standing Committee on European Community Affairs as well as the Special Committee for the Reform Treaty of the European Union.
Local government career
In March 2010, he took over as Deputy Secretary of Hellenes Abroad for New Democracy. In the Regional Elections of November 14, 2010, he was elected Deputy Regional Governor of Thessaloniki. In 2019, he successfully sought the position of Regional Governor again. He was elected in the first round of elections with a percentage of 62.03% of the votes and 44 seats, which is the highest percentage in regional elections, compared to 11.47% and 8 seats for Christos Giannoulis of SYRIZA. In November 2019, he was elected President of the Association of Regional Authorities of Greece.
In 2023, he was re-elected Regional Governor in the first round of elections, receiving a percentage of 60.28% and 40 seats, compared to 10.61% and 7 seats of the second candidate Christos Papastergiou of PASOK. In February 2024, he was re-elected President of the Association of Regional Authorities of Greece in February 2024.