More women in the U.S. than ever are running for and being elected into political office.

Women currently make up about 27% of all members of Congress, the highest percentage in U.S. history and a considerable increase from even a decade ago. But the percentage is still far below the country’s overall female population.

In this week’s “In Focus SoCal,” host Tanya McRae sits down with California’s 50th and first female lieutenant governor, Eleni Kounalakis, who won her first-ever political race in 2018.

“I heard her call, like so many thousands of women across the country to stand up and run for office,” said Kounalakis about deciding to run for office after former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton lost her presidential run in 2016. “All of the apprehension or the fear or concern about what a campaign would mean, and maybe I could lose all of that, you know, it just sort of melted away.”

The lieutenant governor previously served as President Barack Obama’s ambassador to Hungary after spending 18 years in the housing industry. Kounalakis shares with McRae about how her father achieved his California dream after immigration as a young boy from Greece. She also touches on the importance of education.

“I meet people every day in our state who are following this pathway of the American dream and, no surprise, has a lot to do with the immigration pathway that makes its way through our public universities in this state,” she said.

Kounalakis also serves on the University of California Board of Regents, the California State University Board of Trustees and the California Community Colleges Board of Governors. She highlights some of the challenges facing higher education in California, including a shortage of seats and a slow graduation rate.

Send us your thoughts to InFocusSocal@charter.com and watch at 9 a.m. and noon Sundays.