Slovenian President Borut Pahor – Male Model
Borut Pahor was born on November 2, 1963, in Yugoslavia (what is now Slovenia). His father died when he was young and he was raised by his mother, who had survived a Nazi concentration camp. He was dedicated to his studies and graduated from Nova Garcia High School in 1983. He continued his schooling at the University of Ljubljana where he studied political science and public policy. At the University, he earned the Student Preseren Award, the highest academic award for Slovenian students.
Pahor had to work in order to pay for his studies and support himself through school. He did this by working as a male model. Pahor garnered some fame as a model, but his true intention was always to become involved in Slovenian politics.
Pahor became a member of the Alliance of Socialist Youth of Slovenia when he was 15, and in college, he joined the League of Communists in Slovenia. From there he rose through the ranks of the Communist party and became one of the strongest advocates of the reform wing of the Communist party throughout the late 1980s. In 1988, he made Slovenian history as the first high-ranking member of the Communist Party to suggest turning away from a one-party system and moving toward party pluralism. In 1989, he became the youngest member of the Central Committee of the League of Communists in Slovenia.
As the Communist Party started to lose power in Slovenia through the first free elections in the 1990s, Pahor continued to move up through the ranks. In 2000, he was elected chairman of the Slovenian National Assembly and he gained a following for being moderate and non-partisan. From 2008 until 2012, he served as Slovenia’s Prime Minster, which paved the way for him to make a presidential run in 2012. He won the election with 67.3% of the vote.