Kamala Harris: What we know about her 59-year-old husband Douglas Emhoff

It's official, Joe Biden, the 47th President of the United States, is withdrawing from the presidential race for the next American elections. At the age of 81, Biden is stepping down in the face of his 'enemy', Donald Trump. He has now endorsed Kamala Harris, the first Vice-President of the United States, to be a presidential candidate.

The 59-year-old shares her life with her husband, Douglas Emhoff.

Who is Douglas Emhoff, Kamala Harris' husband?

Douglas Emhoff was born on 13 October 1964, just seven days before Kamala Harris who was born on 20 October of the same year. Douglas Emhoff is a distinguished lawyer at DLA Piper, as well as a family man. In the columns of Marie-Claire, the divorced father-of-two confessed to being 'a lawyer, a guy, a father', but above all 'not a politician'. He told CBS News:

I am her husband. She has plenty of people around her giving her advice on her role. I'm just there to support her, to be there for her.

Although he's characterized by his lack of interest in politics, he's still a strong supporter of his wife.

Joe Biden's Vice President has now been married to Douglas Emhoff for what will be 10 years in August.

How did Kamala Harris meet her husband?

In her book The Truths We Hold, Harris got into the nitty-gritties of how she met her now husband Emhoff in 2013. Turns out she was set up on a blind date by her friend Chrisette Hudlin, who told her that she had met a 'cute man' that was perfect for her.

Before the two went on their first date, they exchanged messages and talked over the phone. Harris recalls receiving a long and 'little rambling' voice message from the lawyer that left her feeling quite intrigued. Her husband on the other hand thought he had lost his chances. She said, as quoted by Today:

Doug, on the other hand, was pretty sure that he had ruined his chances.

The way he tells it, he thought his voicemail had been disastrous and that he’d likely never hear from me again. He had to restrain himself from calling again and leaving another long-winded message trying to explain away the first one.

The two finally went on their date and Harris said she liked him 'immediately'. Emhoff apparently did not waste any time in seizing the opportunity to get to know her more, and sent her an email with his available dates for the next months. He also made his intentions very clear from the start. He said in the email, according to Harris:

I’m too old to play games or hide the ball. I really like you, and I want to see if we can make this work.

They dated for a short period of time before tying the knot the following year in 2014, and have now have very 'modern' family together.

Their modern family

Douglas Emhoff already has two children, Cole and Ella (aged 26 and 21), from his previous marriage to Kerstin Emhoff—and it seems like Harris gets along quite well with them. In fact, she hates being called 'step-mom' and instead her kids called her 'momala'!

In an essay she wrote for Elle in 2019, the Vice President spoke of her relationship with her husband's ex-wife:

Kerstin and I hit it off ourselves and are dear friends. She and I became a duo of cheerleaders in the bleachers at Ella’s swim meets and basketball games, often to Ella’s embarrassment. We sometimes joke that our modern family is almost a little too functional.

This article has been adapted from Oh!MyMag FR.

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Sources used:

Elle: Kamala Harris on Being ‘Momala’

CBS News: Doug Emhoff on the role of second gentleman

Today: Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff: A timeline of their relationship