At the same time that Kamala Harris became the first female vice president of the United States on Wednesday, her husband, Douglas emhoff, also entered the history books at the beginning of his term as the first “second gentleman” from the country in the 232 years of American democracy.
Emhoff (1964), an experienced attorney in the entertainment industry, was born and raised in brooklyn (New York) until age 17. From there he moved with his family to California, the state that was his home from then until his landing in Washington DC
On the West Coast he graduated from the University of Southern California School of Law. He married his first wife, Kerstin Emhoff, with whom She had two children, Cole and Ella,
Douglas Emhoff with Kamla Harris, during the US presidential campaign. Photo: AP
He worked in various law firms until he became a partner at DLA Piper and in 2013, after divorcing, he met his current wife, Kamala Harris.
A “blind date” that ended in marriage
The brand-new US Vice President took the advice of a close friend to meet Emhoff for the first time in a “blind date”, when she was the attorney general of California, according to both have told several times in interviews about the beginning of their relationship.
According to her account, Emhoff took the initiative after that first meeting and sent an email to Harris with a list of all the available dates on her calendar to continue seeing her and with the message: “I want to see if we can make this work”.
Douglas Emhoff says he will dedicate himself to trying to “build trust in US institutions.” and to teach law classes. Photo: BLOOMBERG
Emhoff himself wrote about that first date in an article published this Tuesday in GQ magazine: “The moment I met Kamala I knew I was in love” were his words.
“Not only because of who she is, warm, funny and compassionate woman that supports our family, but also because of the deep determination with which he fights for the causes in which he believes, “he added.
And it worked, since a year after that first date they decided to get married in a “super intimate” ceremony, according to Harris, in a court in Santa Barbara (California, USA).
“I may be the first ‘second gentleman’, but I know I won’t be the last.”
Douglas emhoff
Second US Knight
After the wedding, Harris officially became the stepmother of Cole and Ella, who they now refer to her as “Momala”, a play on words between the word “mom” and Kamala.
Six years after their wedding, Harris was chosen by the now president, Joe Biden, as his running mate for the elections.
Emhoff decided leave your post “temporarily” at the leading law firm focused on entertainment and intellectual property, where he has clients such as football player Willie Gault and companies such as Merck and Walmart, according to Oprah Magazine.
Following the November election victory, Emhoff announced that he would definitely leave his workplace starting today, January 20, with the inauguration of Biden and Harris as new US leaders.
In this way, Emhoff will be able to focus on his new role as the first “second gentleman” in history, a position from which he hopes to have an impact and generate trust “in the institutions of the country and abroad,” according to his article in GQ.
In addition to his official position, the New Yorker also will teach law at Georgetown University, in Washington, one of the most prestigious in the country.
“I may be the first ‘second gentleman’, but I know i won’t be the last“, he assured.
By Alex Segura Lozano – EFE
