Childhood and Education

Konstantina (Bequary) is daughter of two Albanian

Albanians

Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...

 immigrants. She was born and raised in Waterbury, Connecticut

Waterbury, Connecticut

Waterbury is a city in New Haven County, Connecticut, on the Naugatuck River, 33 miles southwest of Hartford and 77 miles northeast of New York City...

 and worked in her parents' restaurant while attending public school. Konstantina worked her way through college and law school, graduating from Simmons College

Simmons College (Massachusetts)

Simmons College, established in 1899, is a private women's undergraduate college and private co-educational graduate school in Boston, Massachusetts.-History:Simmons was founded in 1899 with a bequest by John Simmons a wealthy clothing manufacturer in Boston...

 and the University of Connecticut School of Law

University of Connecticut School of Law

The University of Connecticut School of Law is the only public law school in Connecticut and one of only four in New England. The school was recently ranked forty-sixth out of the 190 American Bar Association-accredited law schools in the United States and is considered a Tier 1 school by U.S...

.

Professional career and Public Service

Konstantina Lukes is a practicing attorney who maintains a Law Office in Worcester

Worcester

The City of Worcester, commonly known as Worcester, , is a city and county town of Worcestershire in the West Midlands of England. Worcester is situated some southwest of Birmingham and north of Gloucester, and has an approximate population of 94,000 people. The River Severn runs through the...

, Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

, specializing in Family law, Divorce, Probate and Real Estate law.

Lukes serves as a public official in Worcester, Massachusetts. She began her public service as the first Chair of the Worcester City Manager's Commission on the Status of Women. She was appointed by Massachusetts' Governor Michael Dukakis

Michael Dukakis

Michael Stanley Dukakis served as the 65th and 67th Governor of Massachusetts from 1975–1979 and from 1983–1991, and was the Democratic presidential nominee in 1988. He was born to Greek immigrants in Brookline, Massachusetts, also the birthplace of John F. Kennedy, and was the longest serving...

 as a Commissioner for the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination

Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination

The Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination is the primary agency for civil rights law enforcement, outreach, and training in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...

.

Lukes ran for office on the Worcester School Committee, eventually serving four terms, while also holding the position of Vice Chairman of the School Committee. She was elected to the Worcester City Council as a Councilor at Large in 1990, and also served as Vice Chairman of the Worcester City Council.

Lukes was sworn in as Mayor of the City of Worcester, Massachusetts

Worcester, Massachusetts

Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....

, in 2007 and then in January, 2008, she became the first popularly elected female Mayor in the history of the City of Worcester. Her term ended in January 2010. Lukes is currently running for mayor in the 2011 election.

Personal

Konnie Lukes is married to Dr. James Lukes and they have one son, Peter, who is also an attorney in Worcester.