Immigrant of the Day: Arianna Huffington

Arianna Huffington (born Arianna Stassinopoulos (Greek: Αριάννα Στασινόπουλου) on July 15, 1950 in Athens, Greece) is a nationally syndicated columnist, author of eleven books, and the co-founder and editor-in-chief of The Huffington Post (here), a news and blog site that is a widely read and linked to, website.  She is also co-host of “Left, Right & Center,” public radio’s popular political roundtable program.  In 2006, Huffington Post to Time magazine’s list of the world’s 100 most influential people.  Her latest book is On Becoming Fearless…. in Love, Work, and Life.

Huffington describes herself as a “former right-winger who has evolved into a compassionate and progressive populist.” 

Originally from Greece, Huffington moved to England at the age of sixteen and attended Girton College at Cambridge University where she was President of the Cambridge Union Society in 1971 and graduated with an MA in economics in 1972. After graduation, she moved to London and later moved to the United States in 1980. She met millionaire Michael Huffington in San Francisco and the couple married in 1986. The Huffingtons moved to Washington, D.C., when Michael was appointed to a post in the Department of Defense. They later established residency in Santa Barbara, California.  In 1992, Michael sucessfully ran as a Republican for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. In 1994, he narrowly lost the race for a U.S. Senate seat from California to incumbent Dianne Feinstein.  The Hufingtons divorced in 1997.

Arianna Huffington was a candidate for Governor of California in 2003. She finished fifth among the replacement candidates in the election to recall California Governor Gray Davis, despite the fact that she dropped out of the race a week before the election.  Huffington is a naturalized citizen. Today, she lives in Los Angeles with her two daughters.

KJ