CHICAGO — Doug Emhoff sought to introduce the country to his wife “Momala,” better known as Vice President Kamala Harris, speaking to the human side of a public figure many Americans are still getting to know.
With self-deprecating ease, the nation’s first second gentleman called his wife a “joyful warrior” and a loving co-parent to his kids who, on their anniversary every year, makes him listen to the “embarrassing” voicemail he left asking her out on their first date.
“My mom is the only one who thinks Kamala is the lucky one for marrying me,” he said to laughs Tuesday on the second night of the Democratic National Convention.
Emhoff, a Los Angeles attorney who took leave from his firm when Harris become vice president, has two now-grown children from his first marriage. He said Harris, who has no biological children of her own, has put their family first, no matter how demanding her job gets.
“Those of you who belong to blended families know things can be a little complicated. But as soon as they started calling her ‘Momala,’ I knew we were going to be OK,” said Emhoff.
Earlier this month, Emhoff admitted to having had an affair that ended his first marriage. But his ex-wife, Kerstin, defended him as a “great father” and a “great friend,” saying she is “really proud of the warm and supportive blended family Doug, Kamala and I have built together.”
Their daughter, Ella, who was 15 when her father married Harris, has called them a “three-headed parenting machine.” She is now a fashion designer and occasional model with a large following on social media.
Emoff’s son, Cole, recently got married and asked Harris to officiate the wedding. Emoff said Harris pored herself into writing her remarks, despite her duties in Washington, and had them bound in a book that he gave the couple as a gift.
“She has always been there for our children, and I know she’ll always be there for yours, too,” he said.
Emhoff has devoted himself to Harris’ career as well, seeming to relish the ceremonial duties of a White House spouse that — since America’s founding — have always been performed by women. When she was inaugurated, it not was not even clear what to call him, since there was no precedent for the role, until he settled on second gentleman.
Now, if his wife wins the presidency, he would be the first first gentleman in American history.
During their spouses’ 2020 presidential campaign, Emhoff struck up a close friendshnip with Chasten Buttigieg, the husband of now-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
And in a political moment charged with controversy over Israel’s war in Gaza, Emhoff, who is Jewish, tried to head off claims of antisemitism that have been percolating on the right. Trump this week claimed, without evidence, that Harris had passed over Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro to be her running mate because he is Jewish.
“She comes to synagogue with me for high holy day services, and I go to church with her on Easter,” he said.
Harris, who takes pride on her skills in the kitchen and has appeared on cooking shows, makes a “mean brisket for passover,” according to her husband, which he said reminds him of the one his “bubbala” — Yiddish for grandmother — used to make in her Brooklyn apartment.
Still, he said, his wife is “tough as nails” and never misses an opportunity to poke fun at him.
“Thursday is our 10th anniversary and I know that means I’ll hear that embarrassing voicemail again,” he said. “But I know I’ll hear something else that day — I’ll hear her accept your nomination for president of the United States.”
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