Ioannis Varvitsiotis (1933 – 2026)
Written and published by the SouleMap editorial team. Published August 3, 2026. This tribute was not created by the family. Are you a family member? Claim this memorial.
In loving memory of Ioannis Varvitsiotis. Born August 2, 1933. Passed away August 2, 2026. Final resting place: Athens, Greece.
Their Story
Ioannis Varvitsiotis was a lawyer, long-serving member of parliament, and former defence minister who played a central role in Greek political life for almost five decades. A close ally of former prime minister Constantine Karamanlis, he held senior posts within both the National Radical Union (ERE), the conservative party that preceded New Democracy, and New Democracy itself, which Karamanlis founded after the fall of the military junta. In the first parliamentary elections following the restoration of democracy in 1974, he received more preference votes than any other candidate in Greece while standing with New Democracy, and that year he also entered government for the first time, serving as deputy interior minister in the National Unity government led by Konstantinos Karamanlis. He served as defense minister of Greece from 2 July 1989 till 7 October 1989 and from 11 April 1990 till 13 October 1993. He was a Member of the European Parliament for New Democracy from 2004 to 2009, part of the European People's Party. He passed away peacefully at his home in Athens, surrounded by his children, on the very day he was marking his 93rd birthday.
Sources
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