Konstantinos Mitsotakis (Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Μητσοτάκης, romanized: Konstantínos Mitsotákis, IPA: [konsta(n)ˈdinos mit͡soˈtacis]; 31 October [O.S.

Mitsotakis was born on 31 October 1918[2][3] in Halepa suburb, Chania, Crete, into an already powerful political family, linked to the distinguished statesman Eleftherios Venizelos on both sides.

His father Kyriakos Mitsotakis (senior)  [el] (1883–1944), also MP for Chania in the Greek Parliament (1915–20) and leader of the Cretan volunteers fighting with the Greek army in the First Balkan War, married Stavroula Ploumidaki, daughter of Charalambos Ploumidakis [el], the first Christian mayor of Chania and an MP at the time of the Cretan State, himself a first cousin of Eleftherios Venizelos.

His first daughter, Dora Bakoyannis, ND Member of Parliament, founder and president of Democratic Alliance party, was the mayor of Athens (2003–2006) and the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2009.

Mitsotakis was elected to the Greek Parliament for the first time in 1946, standing for the Liberal Party in his native prefecture of Chania, Crete.

He was arrested in 1967 by the military junta but managed to escape to Turkey with a help of Turkish foreign minister İhsan Sabri Çağlayangil and lived in exile with his family in Paris, France, until his return to Greece in 1974, following the restoration of democracy.

Finally, the lone MP from Democratic Renewal agreed to a coalition with ND, allowing Mitsotakis to form government by one seat.

IKA pension replacement rates, however, were reduced from 80% to 60%, while the retirement age was raised to 65 for both men and women who entered the workforce in 1993.

Mitsotakis also supported a new dialogue with Turkey, but made progress on the Cyprus dispute a prerequisite for improvement on other issues.

Papandreou, cleared of charges arising from the Koskotas scandal in a 7–6 vote at the Eidiko Dikastirio (Special Court), criticised Mitsotakis's government for its economic policies, for not taking a sufficiently strict position over the naming dispute with the newly independent Republic of Macedonia (Mitsotakis favored a composite name such as "Nova Macedonia", for which he was accused at the time of being too lenient) as well as over Cyprus, and for being too pro-American.

Mitsotakis' government restored the pre-1989 electoral system, which allowed Papandreou's PASOK to obtain a clear parliamentary majority after winning the premature 1993 elections and return to office.