Constantinos Stephanopoulos

Mr. Stephanopoulos was born in Patras. After attending the Saint Andrew School of Patras, he studied law at Athens University. He practiced law from 1954-1974 as a member of the Bar Association of Patras. He stood for election in 1958, with the National Radical Union and was elected for the first time as Member of Parliament for Achaia in 1964. He was reelected for the same constituency for New Democracy (ND) in 1974, 1977, 1981, and 1985. He served as ND Parliamentary Secretary and Parliamentary Spokesman between 1981-1985. In 1974, Stephanopoulos was appointed Deputy Minister of Commerce in the National Unity Government of Constantine Karamanlis. For the next 7 years, he served in several ministerial posts in New Democracy Governments: Minister for the Interior from November 1974-September 1976; Minister for Social Services from September 1976-November 1977; Minister for the Presidency from 1977-1981. In August 1985, he withdrew from the ND and on September 6 of the same year formed the Democratic Renewal (DIANA). He was elected member of the Parliament for Athens in the Elections of 1989 while continuing as President of DIANA, until it disbanded in June 1994. Constantinos Stephanopoulos has served as President of the Hellenic Republic (1995-2005), he was elected on March 8. 1995, reelected for a second term in 2000 the new millennium on February 8, 2000, and he remained in office until March 2, 2005, when he was succeeded by Karolos Papoulias. As Head of State of the host country in the Opening Ceremony (2004), he was the first President of the Hellenic Republic to officially declare the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad in Athens 2004, the Olympic Homecoming open on August 13, 2004. President Stephanopoulos was accompanied by the President's Adjutant of the Hellenic Air Force, Colonel Georgios Dritsakos. During the Athens Olympics in 2004, he accepted the former King Constantine II of Greece at the Presidential Palace. It was the highest political recognition given to the former King since he was deposed in 1973.