David J. Kostelancik

David J. Kostelancik is an American diplomat who was a nominee to be the United States ambassador to Albania during the Biden Administration.

Early life and education

A native of Illinois, Kostelancik earned a Master of Science from the National War College in national security policy. He also received a Master of Arts from the University of Michigan in Russian and East European studies and a Bachelor of Arts from Northwestern University in mathematics and political science.

Nomination as ambassador to Albania On January 23, 2023, President Joe Biden nominated Kostelancik to serve as the United States ambassador to Albania. Hearings on his nomination were before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on March 30, 2023. The committee favorably reported his nomination to the Senate floor on April 27, 2023. On January 3, 2024, his nomination was returned to the president under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate. He was renominated on January 11, 2024. The Senate did not act on his nomination and it expired on January 3, 2025.

Personal life Kostelancik speaks Russian, Hungarian, Albanian and Turkish.