Alexis Tsipras

Biography

Alexis Tsipras (Greek: Αλέξης Τσίπρας, born 28 July 1974) is a Greek politician of the political left, who served as Prime Minister of Greece from 2015 to 2019. A socialist, Tsipras was leader of the Greek political party Syriza from 2008 to 2023. Tsipras is the fourth prime minister who has governed in the course of the 2010s Greek government-debt crisis. Originally an outspoken critic of the austerity policies implemented during the crisis, his tenure in office was marked by an intense austerity policy, mostly in the context of the third EU bailout to Greece (2015–18). In January 2015, Tsipras led Syriza to victory in a snap legislative election, winning 149 out of 300 seats in the Hellenic Parliament and forming a coalition with the Independent Greeks. On 20 August 2015, seven months into his term as prime minister he lost his majority after intraparty defections, announced his resignation, and called for a snap election to take place the following month. In the September 2015 election that followed, Tsipras led Syriza to another victory, winning 145 out of 300 seats and re-forming the coalition with the Independent Greeks. As prime minister, he has overseen negotiations regarding the Greek government-debt crisis, initiated the Greek bailout referendum, responded to the European migrant crisis, and signed the Prespa agreement. In 2015, he was named by TIME magazine as one of the 100 most influential people globally.