Elly Schlein
Elena Ethel "Elly" Schlein (; born 4 May 1985) is an Italian politician. She has been the secretary of the Democratic Party (PD) since 12 March 2023. She is a member of Italy's Chamber of Deputies and was previously the vice-president of Emilia-Romagna and a member of the European Parliament. On 26 February 2023, she was elected as the new secretary of the PD in an upset. Early life and education Elena Ethel Schlein was born on 4 May 1985 in Lugano, Switzerland. Her father, Melvin Schlein, is an American academic and political scientist of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. Her mother, Maria Paola Viviani, is a professor of comparative public law at the University of Insubria. Originally, her paternal grandfather's surname was Schleyen; after arriving at Ellis Island, he changed it to Schlein. Her maternal grandfather was the Italian Socialist Party politician , senator from 1972 to 1979 and a member of the High Council of the Judiciary. Her paternal ancestors were from Zhovkva, now located in Ukraine, and her paternal grandmother, from whom she takes the middle name "Ethel", was of Lithuanian origin. She has a sister who is a diplomat by profession and a brother who is a mathematician.