Eleni Kounalakis

Why Thrive LA endorses Eleni

Eleni Kounalakis is the current Lieutenant Governor of California and a candidate for State Treasurer. Before entering public service, she spent nearly two decades as president of AKT Development, her family's real estate firm, which built master-planned housing communities in the Sacramento region housing over 200,000 families. She holds an MBA from UC Berkeley and served as U.S. Ambassador to Hungary under President Obama. The State Treasurer manages California's $100 billion investment portfolio, oversees bond financing for infrastructure and housing, and sits on the boards of CalPERS and CalSTRS. The office demands someone who understands capital markets, housing finance, and fiscal discipline. Kounalakis is the rare candidate who has actually built housing at scale in the private sector and can apply that experience to lowering the state's cost of capital and accelerating housing production through streamlined bond financing. She opposed Proposition 33 (2024), which would have removed state limitations on local rent control, a clear signal that she understands price controls reduce supply. Her commitment to keeping the state's debt-service-to-General-Fund ratio at or below 6%, opposing the use of one-time windfalls for permanent spending programs, and creating a public-facing financial dashboard reflects the kind of fiscal seriousness the office requires. Kounalakis carries endorsements from law enforcement organizations including the Los Angeles Police Protective League, the California Statewide Law Enforcement Association, the California Correctional Peace Officers Association, and the California Association of Highway Patrolmen. California Professional Firefighters and multiple firefighter unions also back her candidacy. She is endorsed by State Treasurer Fiona Ma, State Controller Malia Cohen, and former State Treasurer Kathleen Brown. Her background in real estate development gives her direct, operational understanding of what it takes to move housing from approval to construction, knowledge that is essential for a Treasurer who will oversee billions in housing bond financing. Eleni Kounalakis is the fiscally disciplined, housing-literate Treasurer California needs.