Kamala Harris became the first black woman and person to reach the vice presidency of the United States on Wednesday, but she is not the only one who breaks centuries of tradition.
Her husband, Douglas Emhoff , better known as “Doug”, also broke cultural barriers by becoming the first man to occupy a place that until now had only been occupied by women.
The role of “second lady”, as the couples of vice presidents have been told until now, is so tied to the female sex that until Emhoff’s arrival there was not even a male version of the term.
After a period of speculation it was decided to adopt the title of “second gentleman”.
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Emhoff already has his own Twitter account with that name: @SecondGentleman added more than 800. 000 of followers even before the husband of the vice president will publish his first tweet.
But this lawyer of 56 years -the same age as his wife- not only difference from the previous second ladies for being a man.
While most of the Wives of vice presidents in the past had spent a lifetime accompanying their political husbands, Emhoff has barely seven years of experience in this field.
And it was just over seven years ago, in 2013, when Emhoff met Harris on a blind date coordinated by her best friend.
At the time Harris was the attorney general of California and he had a law firm that specialized in corporate law.
One year after meeting, in August of 2014, They got married.
“Momala”
Unlike her, who had never been married and had no children, Emhoff had been divorced six years before his first wife, the film producer Kerstin Emhoff, with whom he has two children at that time adolescents.
In an essay that wrote for Elle magazine in 2020, Harris described the special relationship she had from the beginning with her stepchildren.
“Cole and Ella couldn’t have been more welcoming,” he wrote. “They are bright, talented and fun kids who have grown into extraordinary adults.”
Harris even said that it was her excellent relationship with them that led her to decide to marry Emhoff.
“I was already hooked on Doug, but I think it was Cole and Ella who finished me hooking up completely “, she said.
She also revealed that her husband’s children nicknamed her” Momala “, since they did not like the expression “Stepmother”.
Harris often refers to his family during his speeches.
“ Family is everything to me and I can’t wait for the US to meet my husband Doug and our amazing children Cole and Ella,” she told her supporters during a campaign rally last August after Joe Biden confirmed as his running mate.
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“I have had many titles throughout my career and certainly being vice president will be great, but being ‘Momala’ will always be the one that will have the most value for me “, she confessed.
She has also revealed that she maintains an excellent relationship with Kerstin Emhoff, her husband’s ex-wife, who even collaborated with her electoral campaign.
Driven into the public arena
Despite the fact that until not long ago Emhoff’s life was completely removed from the world of politics, some of his acquaintances claim that has taken a liking to him to your n New role.
During the first years of the relationship with Harris, he kept his professional life separate.
In 2017, a year after she was elected senator by California – which launched her career in full policy- he left the signature he had opened at 2000 (and that in 2006 had been acquired by the Venable firm) to become a partner of the international law firm DLA Piper, specialized in litigation related to entertainment and intellectual property.
For about years, Emhoff alternated between DLA Piper’s offices in Los Angeles and Washington DC.
But his public profile increased in January of 2019 when his wife launched her campaign to become the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party in the elections of 2020.
Emhoff actively participated in the campaign, which lasted for a year, until Harris terminated in December.
However, it was Harris’s election as second to Biden, made official in August 2020, which actually propelled Emhoff to the public arena.
Not only did he continue to support his wife in many of her acts and vocally through his social networks, he even began to represent her in some events , making speeches on behalf of the Biden-Harris campaign.
Despite his lack of experience, Emhoff has declared his enthusiasm for his new roles, that have earned him his own group of admirers, calling himself the #DougHive or “ Hive Doug ”(his wife’s fans are #KHive).
“It seems he really likes it,” Aaron Jacoby, an old friend and former legal partner of Emhoff, told the BBC.
It would feel like a fish out of water, but it doesn’t. He is simply swimming and enjoying himself ”, he assured.
His children, Cole and Ella, have also remarked that their father seems made for this new role.
“ I think Doug is a bit of a chameleon and that’s why everyone loves him. As it can fit in any room ”, Cole remarked to the“ New York Times ”, the oldest, who today has 26 years.
“I think that, of all people, Doug happened to be born for this “.
Following tradition
Beyond his gender, Emhoff has respected some traditions of vice-president couples.
By To begin with, he left his job: last August he took a leave of absence not only to support his wife in her campaign but also to avoid any conflict of interest.
And after the electoral victory of Biden and Harris, Emhoff followed in the footsteps of most of his predecessors and announced that was abandoning his career to pursue his new duties as “second gentleman.”
Yes While the task is primarily ceremonial, it is customary for the leaders’ partners to also focus on matters of public concern that complement the main objectives of their partners.
The current first lady, Jill Biden, focused on military families and education when her husband was vice president of Barack Obama (2009 – 2017).
Interestingly, Biden, a teacher by profession, broke with protocol and continued teaching English at a community college while serving as second lady, a job she plans to keep as the president’s wife.
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Emhoff will follow in her footsteps: he announced that will combine his official duties with teaching , where appropriate teaching a course on entertainment rights at Georgetown University.
Asked about what could be his focus of As a second gentleman, Jacoby noted that one option could be criminal justice reform, something that worries Emhoff as much as Like Harris.
However, Jacoby points out that his friend’s main focus will be the vice president .
“Doug is in this to support Kamala,” he assured.
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