Kounalakis was sworn-in as Lieutenant Governor of California in January 2019 and again in January 2023 after being elected to a second term by voters. She is the first woman elected as Lieutenant Governor of California.
Important to the agricultural community, Lieutenant Governor Kounalakis is California’s Representative for International Affairs and Trade, appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom.
Prior to serving as Lieutenant Governor, former Governor Jerry Brown appointed Kounalakis to chair the California Advisory Council for International Trade and Investment in 2014. Kounalakis was a Virtual Fellow at the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Intelligence and Research between 2014 and 2017, specializing in international trade and immigration.
From 2010 to 2013, Kounalakis served as President Barack Obama’s Ambassador to the Republic of Hungary.
Kounalakis was president of a housing development firm, AKT Development, where she worked for 18 years prior to her public service.
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