The 9 Things We Know About Kamala Harris’s Husband

Joe Biden chose Kamala Harris as his running mate. She could be the first woman elected vice president. Another barrier-breaking event may be coming. Who is the first-second gentleman in U.S. history? Only two men have held that potential in the past. John Zaccaro (Geraldine Ferraro's husband) in 1984 and Todd Palin (Sarah Palin's husband) in 2008. But neither got to use that title. Will Douglas Emhoff finally get to be the second gentleman? Here's what we know about Kamala Harris's husband. 1. He's a lawyer. Emhoff is a partner at DLA Piper, where he works in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. He is an experienced litigator and advisor representing corporations and individuals in business, real estate, and intellectual property disputes. 2. His most famous client was the Taco Bell Chihuahua. In 2019, the Hollywood Reporter wrote that Emhoff's client TBWA created a series of ads featuring a live-action pooch that said "Yo quiero Taco Bell." A Michigan company said it created the "Psycho Chihuahua" character for Taco Bell and sued for breach of contract. Taco Bell tried to pass the $42 million bill to the ad agency, but Emhoff's legal work stopped that. 3. They met on a blind date. Emhoff and Harris met on a date arranged by Harris's friend Chrisette Hudlin in 2013. They met for dinner the next night after a text date. In her memoir, Harris wrote that it was hard for her to have a normal dating life as a public figure. 4. It was a fast romance. The next morning, Emhoff emailed Harris. "I'm too old for games or secrets," it said. "I like you. Let's see if we can make this work." They married less than a year later in a civil ceremony at the Santa Barbara courthouse on a Friday afternoon. Maya Harris officiated. 5. He was a single dad. Harris was divorced with two kids. He shared custody with his first wife, Kerstin. Harris often talks about how her new stepchildren and Emhoff's former wife get along well. In 2018, Vogue reported that Cole graduated from Colorado College in May 2017 and started working as an assistant at William Morris Endeavor. Daughter Ella is a student at Parsons. On Wednesday, Harris spoke warmly of her stepchildren and the nickname they gave her at a campaign event with Joe Biden in Wilmington, Delaware. She said, "I've had many titles, and vice president will be great." "Momala is my favorite." 6. His social media is mostly about his wife. Refinery29 wrote that Emhoff's posts are more impressive than most other "Instagram husbands." Before Harris's first presidential debate, Emhoff posted a picture of the two of them. @KamalaHarris, I love you, I believe in you, and I'm proud of you. The whole country will see what I see every day. You're amazing. He posts selfies with Harris almost every time. One showed Emhoff with a TV in the background. Harris was being interviewed on CNN. "Seeing your wife on TV." On Tuesday, he tweeted a photo of Harris watching the roll call in a sweatshirt from Howard University. 7. He's quick. In June of last year, an animal-rights activist rushed the stage and took the senator's microphone. Harris was quickly removed from the stage, but Emhoff jumped up to help drag the protester away. 8. He found his soulmate on the campaign trail. Early in the presidential primary race, Emhoff and Chasten Buttigieg bonded. The two became social media buddies. After a 2019 profile of Emhoff was published, Chasten posted a shout-out to his friend. "The irony of an article telling you to be yourself and then telling you to be someone else is political life for campaign spouses." Keep being yourself, @douglasemhoff. "The only person you can talk to about this is someone who's going through it too!" 9. He's Jewish! Many of Harris's supporters were surprised and delighted to learn that Emhoff is Jewish. Some of them celebrated their own mixed marriages on social media. The Jewish husband was a trending topic on Twitter with many congratulatory posts from fellow spouses.