Very present in his wife’s campaign, Douglas Emhoff could become this Tuesday, November 5, 2024 the “First Gentleman” of the United States.
Will the “second gentleman” of the United States, Douglas Emhoff, officially become the First? Born on October 13, 1964, just seven days before Kamala Harris, in Brooklyn, Douglas Emhoff has been married to the Vice-President of the United States since 2021. Having worked through several law firms in the 1990s, the man who has just celebrating his 60th birthday, he created his first company in the early 2000s, which was bought in 2006.
A partner in Los Angeles’ largest law firm, Douglas Emhoff took his leave with his arrival at the White House where he was trained by Jill Biden, who long served as “second lady” when her husband was vice-president. President of Barack Obama. Douglas Emhoff then committed himself to equality in access to justice but always refused the title of politician. Kamala “will be a great president of whom we will all be proud,” he declared on August 20, on the stage of the Democratic convention in Chicago. Will this unwavering support be enough for the Democrats to win?
A committed husband and a convinced democrat
Douglas Emhoff prefers golf to politics, he is also part of the Georgetown University Law Center where he can teach and give lectures, a way for him not to completely leave law. The “second gentleman” is also very active on social networks. On Instagram he feeds his two accounts, @douglasemhoff And @secondgentleman, and shows all his devotion to his fights for justice and equality but also to his wife and family. In his bio, we can also read: “Second gentleman of the United States. Devoted father. Proud husband of Vice-President Kamala Harris”, or even: “Defender of justice and equality”.
A few hours after the announcement of Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the race for his re-election, Douglas Emhoff hailed “a true patriot who leads our nation with honesty, decency and integrity”. And wanted to recall that the president and the First Lady “fought tirelessly for families and communities, thus making their contribution to Americans throughout our country”.
A life before Kamala Harris
Before marrying the current vice-president of the United States, Douglas Emhoff was married for 16 years to American producer Kerstin Emhoff, with whom he divorced in 2008. Together they had two children: Cole, in 1994, and Ella Emhoff who was born five years later.
Despite this divorce, the “second gentleman” is still close to his ex-wife, who kept her married name, and Kamala Harris too. During Joe Biden’s inauguration in January 2021, Kerstin Emhoff was present to support America’s “second couple”. “Kerstin and I get along well and are very good friends,” Kamala Harris confided in an interview with Peopleadding, “we sometimes joke that our modern family is almost a little too functional.” The couple has just celebrated ten years of marriage.
A profile to broaden the vice-president’s electorate?
Since Joe Biden’s withdrawal, Doug Emhoff has shown himself much more in public. His speech at the Democratic convention places him as valuable support for the candidate. His image as a family man and sports fan could speak to an electorate with whom his wife is less popular: “voters skeptical of Harris could end up identifying with Emhoff,” assured Kevin Liao, consultant. Democrat in Los Angeles, to the American media NPR. His reputation as a model family man was, however, slightly tainted by the revelation of his cheating on his first wife, as reported by New York Post.
Of Jewish faith, Doug Emhoff is also committed to the fight against anti-Semitism and is a fervent defender of Israel. According to the New York Timesthis could allow Kamala Harris to speak more to American Jewish voters. Conversely, this could possibly cause him to lose votes among the American Muslim and Palestinian community.