Anna Alexopoulou

Kouropalatissa Anna Alexopoulou
Mesazon of Theodorous and the Parathalassias
In office 11 February 2004 – 3 March 2013
Monarch	Paul I (until 2007) Constantine II (after 2007)
Preceded by	Freiderikos Stamenitis
Succeeded by	Antonis Kyriakis
Personal details
Born	(1968-02-14) February 14, 1968 Doros, Crimean ASSR, USSR
Political party	Centre Union

Anna Alexopolou (born 1968) is a Theodoran politician who served as the 4th and longest-serving Mesazon of Theodorous and the Parathalassias from 2004 to 2013. A liberal centrist and pro-European, Alexopolou began her career as a moderate member of the Optimates before co-founding the Centre Union. While she has received praise for her anti-corruption crusades and for facilitating her nation's rapid European Union accession, her later terms, during which she implemented harsh austerity policies, have been the subject of criticism.

Early life and career

Born in the Soviet-controlled Crimean ASSR, Alexopolou joined the pro-independence Hellenic Self-Determination Front (HSDF) in 1987, and when the erstwhile Theodoran Republic gained its independence in 1989, she became a member of the Optimates party, formed by the HSDF's right-leaning wing.

Senatorial career

Alexopolou was elected to the Senate on the Optimates' list in 1995, but joined a group of dissidents from her party and the opposing Populares party to form the new Centre Union, inspired by Venizelist ideals.

Alexopolou was placed second on the Centre Union's list in the 1998 and 1999 elections, but in each case, the party won only a single seat, meaning that she failed to secure election. In April of 1999, she ran in the Centre Union's leadership election, and won with 41% of the members' vote. She then led the party into the 2002 election, in which the Centre Union increased its seat count to 5, winning Alexopolou a seat. In 2003, both the Optimates and Populares were implicated in the "Spoils of War" embezzlement scandal, leading many of their supporters to defect to the Centre Union. When a snap election was called in 2004, therefore, the party won 11 seats, coming in second place behind the Communist Party of Crimea (CPC).

Tenure as Mesazon

First term

After the 2004 election, the far-left Communist Party of Crimea won a 13-seat plurality in the Senate, but as all other parties refused to collaborate with the Communists, the task of forming a government instead fell upon Alexopolou, whose Centre Union had come in second place with 11 seats. Alexopolou quickly finalised an agreement with the newly-created minority interests Movement for our Rights party, but their 3 seats were insufficient to grant Alexopolou a majority. Alexopolou therefore had to secure the abstention of the Communists for her investiture vote. Three weeks after the seating of the new Senate, Alexopolou finally reached an agreement with the CPC, finding common ground with the party in her intentions to clean up the corruption revealed by the Spoils of War scandal. Alexopolou was officially appointed as the new Mesazon on February 11th, 2004. During her first term, Alexopolou pursued an anti-corruption agenda, prosecuting dozens of senior government officials for their involvement in the Spoils of War scandal while implementing anti-corruption safeguards. She also continued the Principality's European Union accession bid. These two objectives required delicate political manoeuvring; Alexopolou had to maintain good relations with both the Communists, who supported anti-corruption efforts but not EU accession, and the Optimates, who were more pro-European but sought to protect their party members from Alexopolou's purges. Alexopolou was nonetheless successful on both fronts, and the Principality joined the EU and Eurozone in 2006. When an election was called in 2007, therefore, Alexopolou and her party were at the peak of their popularity, and the Centre Union secured an absolute majority of 16 seats.

Second term

After winning an absolute majority in the Senate, Alexopolou was able to seek a second term as soon as the new Senate was convoked on January 17th, 2007. Alexopolou was re-elected without incident. Alexopolou aimed to focus on attracting foreign investment during her second term; however, the 2007–2008 financial crisis almost immediately derailed her plans. The European debt crisis soon followed, acutely affecting the Principality, which soon found itself facing a sovereign debt larger than several years of its GDP. Alexopolou responded by implementing austerity policies harsher even than those seen in Greece as the Troika openly threatened the Principality with the prospect of a forced Theodorexit; that is, the ejection of the nation from the Eurozone.

Under Alexopolou's austerity policies, the Theodoran economy shrank by nearly 40%, and wages collapsed as thousands were pushed into poverty. Massive protests broke out against Alexopolou, demanding her resignation and the repeal of austerity policies. Unlike leaders elsewhere, Alexopolou steadfastly refused to resign and stated her intention to serve out "every last day" of her term.

Behind the scenes, Alexopolou negotiated with European leaders to secure victories and stem her party's losses at the forthcoming election. Eventually, she secured two major concessions: a grant of several million euros in aid and the Principality's entrance into the Schengen Area. Alexopolou used the grant to temporarily fund tax cuts and a lessening in austerity before the 2010 elections, while portraying the opposition Communists, who had been leading in the polls, as "running eagerly towards Theodorexit."

Third term

With Alexopolou's popularity having recovered somewhat, the Centre Union managed to hold on to three-quarters of its seats in 2010, netting a total of 12. This seat count left the party tied with the Communists, who had won a slightly higher vote share. However, after negotiations with the Movement for our Rights and Optimates, Alexopolou formed a three-party coalition and was sworn in for a record third term as Mesazon. Almost immediately, Alexopolou restored most of her previous austerity policies, triggering another recession and mass protests. Alexopolou once again refused to resign, even in the face of mounting pressure. By the time the campaign period for the 2013 election had arrived, however, Alexopolou announced that she would not seek another term as Mesazon. In the succeeding election, the Centre Union was decimated, falling to only three seats and a dismal fifth-place finish in terms of vote share. Alexopolou continued as caretaker Mesazon for a few months after the election before conceding to the anti-austerity activist Antonis Kyriakis.

Post-political career

After her term as Mesazon, Alexopolou mostly withdrew from public life, occasionally speaking about her tenure, mostly to international audiences. She purchased a beachfront home in the Despotate of the Parathalassias, where she continues to live. In 2021, she received from Prince Constantine II the noble title of Kouropalatissa, which she holds to this day.