As expected, Theoni Kufonikolakou has been appointed spokesperson for the new party, ELAS (Greek Left Alliance), which Alexis Tsipras unveiled on Tuesday. The new spokesperson has “proved herself” in recent months as the public relations director ofthe “Alexis Tsipras Institute,”and, by all accounts, her tenure has been successful.
As also expected, she will be flanked by four deputy press secretaries: Kostas Karpouchtsis, Giorgos Balatsoukas, Nikos Nifoudis, and Anna Papadopoulou. The latter comes from PASOK, where she served as deputy head of the Justice sector, and left two months ago
Here are their biographies in detail:
- Theoni Kufonikolakou is a lawyer and former Deputy Ombudsman for Children’s Rights, a position she held for eight years; she has also served as President of the European Network of Ombudsmen for Children.
As Ombudsman, she focused particularly on promoting children’s participation in processes that affect their lives and amplifying their voices, as well as on creating a coherent system for the protection of minors from violence. She has worked extensively on addressing violations of the rights of the most vulnerable children and those living in poverty and social exclusion. She has authored articles and policy papers on democratic education and the prevention, early identification and management of child abuse, and has participated in collaborative projects on the interpretation of the International Convention on the Rights of the Child and professional foster care.
From 2015 to 2017, she served as director of the office of the Deputy Minister of Finance, participating in negotiations with the “institutions” at the technical level and in the design of policies and measures to mitigate the effects of the economic crisis on socially vulnerable populations.
Previously, she worked as a lawyer primarily on cases involving the fight against domestic violence, while she collaborated with NGOs to provide legal support to vulnerable populations.
At the same time, she collaborated with the GSEE as a research associate on a study regarding social protection and parental resilience and as an adult educator. She is a Ph.D. candidate in Law at the University of Athens and holds a master’s degree in Political Science and Sociology from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens.
— Kostas Karpouchtsis is an economist and business consultant specializing in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and leveraging financial tools, such as the NSRF programs and the Recovery Fund. A graduate of the Department of Educational and Social Policy at the University of Macedonia and holder of an MBA from the Athens University of Economics and Business, he has been working as a freelancer since 2007, collaborating daily with businesses and organizations. He has firsthand knowledge of the needs and challenges of small and medium-sized enterprises, supporting them in leveraging financial tools, enhancing their international outreach, and planning and implementing innovation and development initiatives.
— George Balatsoukas is a lawyer specializing in criminal law. He has been a member of the Athens Bar Association since 2023 and completed his legal internship in 2021 at the Trikala Public Prosecutor’s Office.
He graduated with honors in 2014 from the 3rd General High School of Trikala “Odysseas Elytis” and was admitted to the Law School of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. He holds a master’s degree in European Criminal Law, summa cum laude, and in December 2023 he completed his thesis titled “Capital Market Crime: European Dimension” – “Capital Market Crime: European Dimension.”
He has been active in student union activities since his undergraduate years, serving as Secretary and Vice President of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Law Students’ Association.
---Nikos Nifoudis studied Political Science and Economics at the University of Macedonia and earned a master’s degree from the University of Portsmouth; He has been active since a young age in European youth and volunteer forums, having represented the country at key European Union events regarding the development of youth policy.
Alongside his political and local government work in the Municipality of Pylaia-Chortiatis, he is a dynamic entrepreneur with an international presence, having established successful ventures in the restaurant industry and the export of Greek products. He has written three books and has been a regular contributor to online and print media for the past 15 years, highlighting issues concerning young people, small and medium-sized enterprises, and the Region. He also served as a member of parliament with To Potami (2019).
— Anna Papadopoulou is an attorney specializing in handling criminal cases across the entire spectrum of criminal law, particularly economic crime cases, from the drafting and filing of criminal complaints, through the preliminary investigation and main interrogation, up to representation in court. She has experience in cases of corporate criminal liability and crimes against property and ownership. He has participated in the handling of civil law cases, as well as enforcement proceedings on behalf of creditors regarding payment orders, objections/stay of execution against payment orders, seizures of movable and immovable property, seizures from third parties, auctions, etc. At the same time, she writes articles for newspapers and websites on political and social issues. She served as the Human Rights Sector Head and subsequently as the Deputy Justice Sector Head of PASOK-KINAL from 2022 until April 2026.