Antigoni Papadopoulou (Greek: Αντιγόνη Παπαδοπούλου; née Pericleous (Greek: Περικλέους); born July 8, 1954) is a Greek Cypriot politician and chemist. She was one of the first two Cypriot women to be elected as Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) among six Cypriot MEPs (2009). She is a former Member of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Cyprus and the First Woman to serve as Chair of the House’s Committee of Economic Affairs and Budgeting (2006–2009). She was an Assembly Member of the Council of Europe from 2001 to 2009 and has also served as Vice Chairperson of the Committee of Economic Affairs of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (2003–2009).

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Quick Facts Member of the European Parliament, Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe ...

Antigoni Papadopoulou
Member of the European Parliament
Incumbent
Assumed office July, 2009
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
In office June 2001 – July, 2009
Member of the House of Representatives of Cyprus
In office May, 2001 – July 2009
Mayor of Morphou
In office December, 1996 – May 2001
Preceded by	Andys Pantelides
Succeeded by	Charalambos Pittas
President of GODIK (Women's Organization of DIKO )
Incumbent
Assumed office 1994
Preceded by	Mary Papadopoulou
Member of the Municipal Council of Strovolos
In office December, 1991 – December 1996
Personal details
Born	Antigoni Pericleous (1954-07-08) July 8, 1954 (age 69) Morphou, Cyprus
Political party	DIKO in Cyprus S&D in the European Parliament
Spouse	Stelios Papadopoulos ​ ​ (m. 1979)​
Children	2
Residence	Cyprus
Alma mater	Russel Sage College (Chemistry) Lancaster University (BSc in Chemistry) Mediterranean Institute of Management (Postgraduate Studies in Management) University of the Aegean (Postgraduate degree in Gender Studies)
Occupation	Politician, chemist
Website	http://www.antigonipapadopoulou.com

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Papadopoulou was the elected Mayor of Morphou from 1996 to 2001. She was the first female mayor in the city's history and the only elected female mayor of Morphou so far, as well as the first woman to serve as a national parliamentarian in the District of Nicosia for the Democratic Party (DIKO) for two consecutive terms (2001 & 2006). She has also served as Municipal Councilor in Strovolos Municipality from 1991 to 1996. She is the President of GODIK, the Women’s Organization of the Democratic Party since 1994.

Papadopoulou was born in Morphou.^[1] She has two younger brothers, Peter and Xenios. Her father, Andreas Pericleous, and her mother, Georgia Pericleous (née Thrasivoulou), originate from Petra, Kythrea, and Voni villages, all occupied by Turkish Cypriot forces since 1974, as is Morphou.

During her early school years, she attended the Elementary School and the First Gymnasium of Morphou (Science Section). She then studied Chemistry at Russell Sage College as a Fulbright Scholar. She continued her academic studies at Lancaster University, first as a Junior Year Abroad (JYA) student, having been selected for the JYA exchange program between the University of Colorado and the University of Lancaster. She continued as a fourth year undergraduate student, having been granted a scholarship by Lancaster University and the British Council.

Papadopoulou obtained her Bachelor of Science in chemistry from Lancaster University in 1977. She then enrolled in the postgraduate diploma program in Management at the Mediterranean Institute of Management (1977–1978) and obtained the relevant diploma with distinction. In 1993, while following a professional career in chemistry, she passed the entrance examinations for the University of Athens to study Greek literature and attended the relevant courses for two academic years. More recently (2007–2009), she followed a post-graduate course of studies at the University of the Aegean (Greece), in Gender studies. She is fluent in Greek and English.

In September 1979, Papadopoulou married economist Dr. Stelios Papadopoulos, and later gave birth to two sons, Charis (age 42) and Andreas (age 40).

Papadopoulou enjoys painting, writing, and poetry. She had her first individual painting exhibition in 2006.

Throughout her undergraduate studies she held occasional jobs as a teaching assistant at the Department of Chemistry at Russell Sage College, Troy, New York. She also took other occasional jobs during summer vacations. After the completion of her studies in Chemistry, she worked for almost a year at Francoudi & Stephanou Shipping Company (Limassol) as management Trainee, attending at the same time the MIM post Graduate Management Program. She was then employed for almost a year as a Quality Control Manager at Vitatrace Nutrition, a local firm manufacturing premixes for animal feedstuffs. She was next employed at the Cyprus Carlsberg Brewery, as a Quality Control Manager, where she had a successful career for almost 23 years (1978–2001). Under this capacity she was responsible for running the Quality Control Department and carrying out the chemical, microbiological and packaging laboratory control of raw materials, semi-finished and final products of the Brewery, as well as table water, fruit juices and other products manufactured by the company.

Throughout her schooling and early years Antigoni Papadopoulou was very active in politics.

She was appointed as a member of the Council of the Cyprus Olive Products Marketing Board and as member of the Cyprus Chemists' Registration Council.

Antigoni Papadopoulou has published the books:

• 'Facing the Attila Barbed Wire' (1996)
• 'Woman ... the other half of heaven' (2006)

and has edited the book “Morphou, 3 600 years of history” and the magazine “The voice of Morphou and the occupied villages of the Morphou plain”. She has also published many articles of a political and social context in the daily and periodical press.

Painting, writing and poetry. First individual painting exhibition (2006).

Republic of Cyprus
Cyprus Issue
Members of the European Parliament for Cyprus 2009–2014
Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats
Democratic Party of Cyprus
Morphou Municipality