Biography
He was born in 1977 in Kalamata. He studied at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering of the NTUA, and did postgraduate studies at the University of Manchester, specializing in renewable energy. He organized from his student years in leftist organizations and joined Synaspismos, SYN in late 2008. In the 2006 local elections he was a candidate for the municipal council in Kalamata but failed to get elected. In the 2012 and September 2015 elections he was a candidate with SYRIZA in Messenia (constituency), Messenia. He was a member of the party's Central Committee and one of the participants in the 53+ Movement. He has also served as coordinator of the Energy Sector of SYRIZA. In the First Cabinet of Alexis Tsipras he served as Secretary General of Public Investment and European Structural and Investment Funds, ESPA at the Ministry of Economy, Infrastructure, Shipping and Tourism. In the Second Cabinet of Alexis Tsipras he was Deputy Minister of Ministry of Economy, Development and Tourism responsible for European Structural and Investment Funds, ESPA. After the reshuffle of 5 November 2016, he was appointed Deputy Minister of Economy and Development. After the reshuffle of 29 August 2018, he was appointed Ministry of Interior (Greece), Minister of Interior, a position he held until 13 June 2019. In the 2019 Greek legislative election, Parliamentary elections of 2019 he was a candidate in Messenia (constituency), Messenia and was elected with 16,279 votes. On 16 July 2019 he was appointed press representative of SYRIZA and remained in that position until September 2020. In the May 2023 Greek legislative election, May and June 2023 Greek legislative election, June 2023 elections he renewed his parliamentary term. In July 2023 he announced that he would not be a candidate in the 2023 Syriza leadership election and that he supports the candidacy of Efi Achtsioglou. He was one of the 9 MPs of the "6+6" group around Efi Achtsioglou who became independent from SYRIZA in November 2023 and co-signed a text of 57 members of the Central Committee of SYRIZA who left the party criticizing its new president, Stefanos Kasselakis, that he harms SYRIZA by demonstrating undemocratic behaviour, political contradictions and lack of programmatic discourse. On 4 December 2023, with the announcement of the formation of the parliamentary group "New Left (Greece), New Left" by eleven MPs who had left SYRIZA, Charitsis was appointed its president.References