Kersti Kaljulaid

Kersti Kaljulaid
Kaljulaid in 2018
President of Estonia
In office 10 October 2016 – 11 October 2021
Prime Minister	Taavi Rõivas Jüri Ratas Kaja Kallas
Preceded by	Toomas Hendrik Ilves
Succeeded by	Alar Karis
Member of the European Court of Auditors
In office 7 May 2004 – 30 September 2016
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Juhan Parts
Personal details
Born	(1969-12-30) 30 December 1969 (age 54) Tartu, Estonia
Political party	Independent
Other political affiliations	Pro Patria Union (2001–2004)
Spouse	Georgi-Rene Maksimovski ​ ​ (m. 2011)​
Children	4
Relatives	Raimond Kaljulaid (half-brother)
Alma mater	University of Tartu

Kersti Kaljulaid (Estonian pronunciation: [ˈkersti ˈkɑljuˈlɑi̯d]; born 30 December 1969) is an Estonian politician who served as the fifth president of Estonia between 2016 and 2021, and was its first and only female head of state since the country declared independence in 1918. She was also the youngest president, aged 46 at the time of her election.^[1]

Kaljulaid, a state official who at the time served as Estonia's representative in the European Court of Auditors,^[2] entered the 2016 Estonian presidential election race in the sixth round after five previous unsuccessful rounds. She was nominated on 30 September 2016 by the majority of parliamentary parties as a joint candidate for president, and the only official candidate for the sixth round. Kaljulaid was voted president on 3 October 2016, with 81 votes and 17 abstentions.^[3][4]