Raina A. Mercedes Echerer (born 16 May 1963 in

Linz Linz (Pronunciation: , ; ) is the capital of Upper Austria and List of cities and towns in Austria, third-largest city in Austria. Located on the river Danube, the city is in the far north of Austria, south of the border with the Czech Repub ...

) is an

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

n film and stage actress, host of TV and radio shows, and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. From 1999 to 2004 she was

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

(MEP) for the

Austrian Green Party The Greens – The Green Alternative (, ) is a green political party in Austria. The Greens currently sit in opposition. Formerly, they were part of the Schallenberg government, the Second Kurz government, and the Nehammer government. It won ...

, part of the

European Greens The European Green Party (EGP), also referred to as European Greens, is a transnational, European political party representing national parties from across Europe who share Green values. The European Greens works closely with the Greens–Eur ...

, although she was not member of the party. During her term she was member of the

Committee on Culture, Youth, Education, the Media and Sport The Committee on Culture and Education (CULT) is a Committees of the European Parliament, committee of the European Parliament. Responsibilities of the committee This committee has focused on the well-being of all members of the human race and ...

, and substitute for the

Committee on Budgets The Committee on Budgets (BUDG) is a committee of the European Parliament. It has 41 members plus 39 substitute members. The committee's current chair is Jean Arthuis, who has held this position since 7 July 2014.Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market The Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) is a committee of the European Parliament. Responsibilities The main responsibilities of the committee are the interpretation and application of international and European law and the compliance of European U ...

. In 1994 she also hosted the

Prix Ars Electronica The Prix Ars Electronica is one of the best known and longest running yearly prizes in the field of electronic and interactive art, computer animation, digital culture and music. It has been awarded since 1987 by Ars Electronica (Linz, Austria ...

. In 2006 she played ''Elmire'' in

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, ; ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the great writers in the French language and world liter ...

's ''

Tartuffe ''Tartuffe, or The Impostor, or The Hypocrite'' (; , ), first performed in 1664, is a theatrical comedy (or more specifically, a farce) by Molière. The characters of Tartuffe, Elmire, and Orgon are considered among the greatest classical theat ...

'' at the Lower Austrian state theater in St. Pölten.

Filmography

*''Wanted'' (1999) *''Der See'' (1996) *''Halbe Welt'' (1993) *''Fahrt in die Hauptstadt'' (1991) *''Café de l'union'' (1990) *''Nachsaison'' (1988) *''Schmutz'' (1985)

TV

*''Ein glücklicher Tag'' (2004) *''Unser Opa ist der Beste'' (1995) *''Landläufiger Tod'' (1990)

External links

European Parliament biographyAustrian Parliament page
* 1963 births Living people Austrian film actresses Austrian stage actresses Austrian television actresses The Greens (Austria) MEPs MEPs for Austria 1999–2004 20th-century women MEPs for Austria 21st-century women MEPs for Austria Actresses from Linz {{Austria-MEP-stub