Could Doug Emhoff become the first gentleman of the US? Meet Kamala Harris’ husband – the first Jewish person in a leading US political couple – and his wife just entered the presidential race

As the 2024 US presidential election draws closer, it’s all hands on deck for both politicians and their spouses, each playing a critical role in ensuring voter support. One person in the spotlight? Douglas “Doug” Emhoff, husband to current Vice-President Kamala Harris. He may be used to being in the public eye, but that scrutiny only is going to intensify now that President Joe Biden has withdrawn from the race and Harris has officially thrown her hat in the ring for the presidency. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Vice President Kamala Harris (@vp) Before Biden’s recent surprise exit, Emhoff was already on the campaign trail on behalf of the current US president, attending rallies and meetings in Nebraska, Los Angeles and Georgia. He has also led interfaith round-tables, spoken about the role men should play in advocating for abortion rights, and held talks on gender equity gaps. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Douglas Emhoff (@secondgentleman) But Emhoff wasn’t always busy talking politics. Rewind to 2020, and his life was completely different: he was a practising lawyer with a special focus on entertainment and media. As his wife campaigned with Biden in the 2020 US elections, Emhoff said, “I’m just a guy. I’m not a politician,” per Marie Claire. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Douglas Emhoff (@secondgentleman) Back then, he went viral for blowing kisses at his wife while waiting for Biden to speak at his first address to a joint session of Congress, and openly spoke about the shock of having his life thrust into the spotlight, describing it as a “rocket ship” to Time magazine. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Douglas Emhoff (@secondgentleman) Now front and centre of the 2024 Democratic campaign for the White House, Emhoff should be more prepared and empowered for round two. Meet the man supporting his wife, the current vice-president – and potential future president – of the US. View this post on Instagram A post shared by President Joe Biden (@potus) What has Doug Emhoff done as second gentleman? View this post on Instagram A post shared by Douglas Emhoff (@secondgentleman) Per his official profile on the White House website, Emhoff has travelled to 14 countries during his four-year tenure as second gentleman. Much of his focus has been on promoting the importance of women in leadership positions, with meetings being held in Japan and France to drive conversations around equal pay, protecting reproductive rights, and equity in the workplace. For us, and for everyone, Thanksgiving is a time for reflection on the past year. One of my favorite memories was when our family visited and together we hung a mezuzah on the front door of the Vice President’s Residence. pic.twitter.com/Lj5jYM4Hic — Douglas Emhoff (@SecondGentleman) November 18, 2021 Emhoff has also shared his Jewish heritage in the White House, celebrating Passover and putting mezuzahs on the doorposts of the vice-president’s official residence. .@SecondGentleman Doug Emhoff, wearing a kippah, wipes away tears as he lays a wreath with a sash saying “from the people of the United States of America” against a wall at Auschwitz where the SS shot thousands pic.twitter.com/qOxJeFOtxz — Jordan Fabian (@Jordanfabian) January 27, 2023 Emhoff has been vocal in his support for combating antisemitism and rallied Jewish leaders together to discuss its rise. In 2023, he also visited the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp on International Holocaust Remembrance Day. How did Kamala Harris meet her husband, Doug Emhoff? View this post on Instagram A post shared by Vanessa 💛 (@vanessa4kamala) In 2013, Harris and Emhoff, now both 59, were set up on a blind date by a mutual friend, PR consultant Chrisette Hudlin. According to People, Emhoff made the first move by sending Harris a string of text messages while he was at a basketball game; then he left a voicemail the next day that apparently sealed the deal. Emhoff has since referred to the message as a “ridiculous voicemail” and admits he thought he’d never hear from Harris again. Harris, meanwhile, called the voicemail “adorable”. Emhoff popped the question in March 2014 and, a few months later, the couple got married in a courthouse wedding in Santa Barbara, California. Harris’ sister, Maya, officiated the ceremony and her niece, Meena, read a Maya Angelou poem, “Touched by an Angel,” during the ceremony. What happened with Doug Emhoff’s career when Kamala Harris became vice-president of the US? View this post on Instagram A post shared by Douglas Emhoff (@secondgentleman) Per People, Emhoff, an accomplished lawyer, took a leave of absence from his firm when Harris announced her primary candidacy in 2020. He then resigned in November 2021 to support his wife as she became vice-president. He told Marie Claire that stepping back from his career for the sake of his wife was only natural. “Our relationship and the way I roll – my whole life has just been to support the people I love unequivocally, and they support me. The whole thing has been based on parity and mutual respect,” he said. According to People, Emhoff graduated from the University of California, Northridge, earning his Juris Doctor degree from the University of California Gould School of Law. He focused on entertainment, sports and media law, and was a partner at DLA Piper, overseeing clients like Dolarian Capital and Walmart. Per CBS, as second gentleman, Emhoff began teaching law part-time at Georgetown University. Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff have a blended family View this post on Instagram A post shared by Douglas Emhoff (@secondgentleman) Emhoff and his ex-wife Kerstin were married for 18 years and remain good friends, with Emhoff acting as her lawyer and business adviser until he left his practice, per People. The pair have two children together, daughter Ella, 25, and son Cole, 29. In an op-ed published in Elle magazine, Harris said she has a good relationship with both children – and with Kerstin: “To know Cole and Ella is to know that their mother Kerstin is an incredible mother. Kerstin and I hit it off ourselves and are dear friends.” Doug Emhoff made history as the first second gentleman View this post on Instagram A post shared by Vice President Kamala Harris (@vp) Although all eyes were on Harris when she became the first Black US vice-president, Emhoff was the first man to become second gentleman – and also the first Jewish person in a leading political couple, reported Time. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Douglas Emhoff (@secondgentleman) According to AP, Emhoff was the highest profile US official to visit Samoa and in 2023, he led the US presidential delegation at the opening of the Fifa Women’s World Cup in Auckland, New Zealand.