Two young women hit the campaign trail

Candidates at the forefront of Greece's political scene seek votes for the first time – Kathimerini shadows them around Athens and Piraeus

a few days after the electoral victory of New Democracy, one photo in the press was discussed more than others. During the handover ceremony at the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, the outgoing minister, Efi Achtsioglou exchanged a warm handshake with the new deputy minister, Domna Michailidou. The next day, the headlines of online publications had titles such as “All eyes on them,” “Two beauties in the Ministry of Labor,” and “A showdown between Efi and Domna.”

The two women already had enough in common. Achtsioglou became labor minister with the SYRIZA administration at the age of 31. Michailidou became deputy labor minister with the ruling conservatives at 32. Before they were actively involved in politics, both had aspirations for academic careers. In addition to her work at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Michailidou also taught at Cambridge University, where she received her master's degree, before becoming Kyriakos Mitsotakis' reform adviser in 2017.

Before becoming one of the scientific advisers of main opposition SYRIZA's team at the European Parliament in Brussels in 2014, Achtsioglou had just completed her PhD in labor law. Their rise has been impressive and not only because they were both appointed to top positions at the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, but also within their respective parties.

Last June, when New Democracy announced it would add more women to its party ticket, Michailidou's name was at the top of the list. In the 2022 election to choose the new members of SYRIZA's Central Committee, Achtsioglou – who some see as a possible successor to leader Alexis Tsipras – came first.

Despite the milestones that the two women have already achieved, neither had actually sought the people's vote. Michailidou was one of New Democracy's 18 non-parliamentary technocrat deputy ministers in 2019, while Achtsioglou became a lawmaker for SYRIZA after the end of her ministerial term, having placed second on the party's country-wide ticket. Until now. The 35-year-old Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Domna Michailidou and SYRIZA's 38-year-old shadow economy minister are entering the electoral battle for the first time seeking the votes of citizens in the 1st Electoral District of Piraeus and in West Athens, respectively. Kathimerini shadowed them for a day to see how the new generation of politicians campaigns.