How Kamala Harris found love with her American husband Douglas Emhoff

America chose its first Black, Indian-origin, and female vice president when Kamala Harris was given the office in 2021. Her white husband stood by her in a supporting role.

After a year-long romance, Harris married Douglas Emhoff 1o years ago in California when she was still the Attorney General and he was a high-powered entertainment lawyer.

Now that Harris has taken over for Joe Biden in the Democrats’ race to win against Donald Trump and is gearing up to clinch the party nomination for President, her husband Emhoff, too, might make history alongside her — as the first First Gentleman of the USA.

Let’s take a look at the couple’s relationship timeline here.

2013: When Doug and Kamala met

The pair met in 2013 on a blind date arranged by a mutual friend, Chrisette Hudlin, as Harris recounted in her 2019 memoir, The Truths We Hold: An American Journey.

Her friend told her about a “cute” man in Los Angeles who seemed perfect for Harris. “His name is Doug Emhoff, but promise me you won’t Google him. Don’t overthink it,” Harris wrote about her friend saying. “Just meet him. I already gave him your number. He’s going to reach out.” (In a 2021 interview with CBS News, Harris revealed that she did Google Emhoff before their date.)

 

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A few days later, Emhoff texted Harris while at a basketball game. They briefly exchanged messages before planning to talk on the phone the next day. The next morning, Emhoff left Harris a voicemail that was “long and a little rambling.”

“The voicemail, which I still have saved to this day, was long and a little rambling. He sounded like a nice guy, though, and I was intrigued to learn more,” Harris wrote.

“There was no pretense or posing with Doug, no arrogance or boasting,” Harris wrote about their first meeting. “He seemed so genuinely comfortable with himself. It’s part of why I liked him immediately.”

2013: When Kamala met Doug’s children, Cole and Ella

Emhoff was previously married to Kerstin Emhoff, and they had two children, Cole and Ella, named after John Coltrane and Ella Fitzgerald.

In a May 2019 piece for Elle, Harris shared her intention to take things slow when meeting Emhoff’s children.

“As a child of divorce, I knew how hard it could be when your parents start to date other people,” she wrote. “And I was determined not to insert myself in their lives until Doug and I had established we were in this for the long haul.”

Harris said they waited “about two months” after their first date for her to meet the children, but the kids “could not have been more welcoming.”

“They are brilliant, talented, funny kids who have grown to be remarkable adults,” she wrote. “I was already hooked on Doug, but I believe it was Cole and Ella who reeled me in.”

2014: When Doug proposed to Kamala

Harris recounted that Emhoff proposed to her while she was stressed about finding a pair of missing pants before a trip to Italy. After agreeing to order takeout, Emhoff popped the question, and Harris initially didn’t realise it.

“I want to spend my life with you,” Emhoff told her.

“I didn’t register the significance of what he’d said at all. I didn’t even look up. My mind was still on the black pants,” she wrote.

FILE – The then Vice President Joe Biden administers the Senate oath of office to the then Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., as her husband, Douglas Emhoff, holds the Bible during a a mock swearing in ceremony. (AP/PTI)

“‘No, I want to spend my life with you,’ he said again,” Harris recounted. “When I looked up, he was getting down on one knee. He’d planned to propose in front of the Ponte Vecchio, but once he had the ring, he couldn’t keep it secret.”

Harris wrote that she burst into tears and said yes.

2014: When Kamala and Doug married

Harris and Emhoff married on August 22, 2014, in a small ceremony officiated by Harris’ younger sister, Maya. The Emhoff children and Harris agreed not to use the term “stepmom,” opting for “Momala” instead.

Harris and Emhoff spent more time in Washington, D.C., after Harris was elected as one of California’s senators. In January 2020, Emhoff began teaching law at the Georgetown University Law Center.

On January 20, 2021, Harris was sworn in as vice president, making Emhoff the second gentleman.

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