Kamala Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, describes meeting her as 'love at first sight.' Here's a timeline of their relationship.

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Talia LakritzOct 24, 2020, 03:53 IST
Kamala Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, describes meeting her as 'love at first sight.' Here's a timeline of their relationship.

Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff.Carolyn Kaster/AP

  • Kamala Harris and husband Doug Emhoff met on a blind date set up by one of Harris' friends.
  • Less than a year later, he proposed and they married in 2014.
  • Emhoff, a lawyer, has accompanied Harris to campaign events, debates, and the Democratic National Convention.
  • If Biden and Harris are elected, Harris would become the first female vice president in US history, and Emhoff would be the first-ever second gentleman.

Doug Emhoff describes meeting Kamala Harris as "love at first sight." The two were set up on a blind date by one of Harris' friends in 2013, and they married the next year.

Harris is the first Black and South Asian woman to run for vice president on a major party ticket. If she and Biden are elected, Emhoff will also become the nation's first-ever second gentleman.

Here's a timeline of their relationship.

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2013: Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff met on a blind date.

2013: Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff met on a blind date.
Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff at an event in 2014. Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Children's Defense Fund

Emhoff, a lawyer, had been married before, to film producer Kerstin Emhoff. The couple shares two children, Cole and Ella, and divorced after 16 years of marriage.

Harris was serving as California's Attorney General.

The two were set up on a blind date by Harris' friend Chrisette Hudlin, who met Emhoff through work.

"The morning after our first date, @DouglasEmhoff emailed me a list of his available dates for the next couple of months," Harris wrote on Instagram on Emhoff's birthday in 2020. "He said, 'I want to see if we can make this work.' We've been making it work ever since."

Emhoff described meeting Harris as "love at first sight" in an Instagram post for her birthday.

August 2014: The couple wed in a ceremony officiated by Harris' sister Maya.

August 2014: The couple wed in a ceremony officiated by Harris' sister Maya.
Doug Emhoff and Kamala Harris in 2014. Rich Polk/Getty Images for LACMA

According to a profile of Emhoff by Marie Claire, he proposed during a "decidedly unromantic conversation (she was deliberating between chicken or shrimp pad thai)" less than a year after they met.

Harris and Emhoff held their wedding at a courthouse in Santa Barbara, California. Harris wrote in Elle that she and Emhoff's children didn't like the term "stepmom," so they began calling her "Momala."

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2015: The couple attended the 2015 Vanity Fair Oscar Party together.

2015: The couple attended the 2015 Vanity Fair Oscar Party together.
Doug Emhoff and Kamala Harris attend the 2015 Vanity Fair Oscar Party. Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

Others in attendance at the star-studded event included Beyoncé and Jay Z, Anna Wintour, Serena Williams, Oprah, and Reese Witherspoon.

2016: Harris successfully ran for US senate, with Emhoff accompanying her to campaign events.

2016: Harris successfully ran for US senate, with Emhoff accompanying her to campaign events.
Kamala Harris shows up to cast her vote in 2016. Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Emhoff came with her to vote at the Kenter Canyon Elementary Charter School Auditorium in Brentwood, California, in 2016.

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January 2017: Emhoff held the Bible for Harris' swearing-in ceremony as a US senator.

January 2017: Emhoff held the Bible for Harris' swearing-in ceremony as a US senator.
Vice President Joe Biden administers the oath at Kamala Harris' swearing-in ceremony in the Capitol's Old Senate Chamber in 2017. Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/Getty Images

Vice President Joe Biden administered Harris' oath of office. Harris later became Biden's vice presidential pick in his 2020 campaign.

January 2019: Harris launched her presidential campaign with Emhoff by her side.

January 2019: Harris launched her presidential campaign with Emhoff by her side.
Senator Kamala Harris waves to her supporters with her husband, Douglas Emhoff and her niece, Amara Ajagu, 2, during her presidential campaign launch rally. Mason Trinca/Getty Images

Harris launched her presidential campaign on the steps of Oakland City Hall. The event was attended by 20,000 people.

"I'm not overly political," Emhoff later told Marie Claire. "I'm overly her husband."

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June 2019: Harris and Emhoff attended the California Democratic Party State Organizing Convention together.

June 2019: Harris and Emhoff attended the California Democratic Party State Organizing Convention together.
Kamala Harris with Doug Emhoff outside the California Democratic Party State Organizing Convention. Melina Mara/The Washington Post via Getty Images

Harris greeted supporters outside the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California.

August 2019: Emhoff snapped a selfie with Harris before her speech at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines ahead of the Iowa caucuses.

August 2019: Emhoff snapped a selfie with Harris before her speech at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines ahead of the Iowa caucuses.
Doug Emhoff takes a selfie with Kamala Harris before her campaign speech. Alex Wong/Getty Images

He showed off his Kamala phone case.

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December 2019: After Harris ended her presidential bid, Emhoff posted a supportive message on Instagram.

December 2019: After Harris ended her presidential bid, Emhoff posted a supportive message on Instagram.
Kamala Harris ended her presidential bid in December 2019. SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

"I've got you @kamalaharris. As always," Emhoff captioned a black and white photo of him embracing her, complete with a heart emoji.

He later told Marie Claire's Jessica M. Goldstein, "She made that decision, and I would have supported whatever she decided. But I'm not her political adviser. I'm her husband. And so my role was to be there for her, to love her, to have her back, to talk it through, to help her."

August 2020: Joe Biden announced Harris as his running mate. Both appeared with their spouses at their first press conference together.

August 2020: Joe Biden announced Harris as his running mate. Both appeared with their spouses at their first press conference together.
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris' first press conference together in Wilmington, Delaware, in 2020. OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images

The two couples observed social distancing by standing apart and air-hugging.

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August 2020: Emhoff, who took a leave of absence from his legal firm, joined Harris at the 2020 Democratic National Convention.

August 2020: Emhoff, who took a leave of absence from his legal firm, joined Harris at the 2020 Democratic National Convention.
Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff onstage at the 2020 Democratic National Convention. OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images

The convention was held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Emhoff announced his leave of absence from the international law firm DLA Piper in August.

September 2020: They held hands at a remembrance ceremony for the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

September 2020: They held hands at a remembrance ceremony for the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff at a 9/11 memorial ceremony. Alex Wong/Getty Images

Harris and Emhoff attended a memorial ceremony at the Fairfax County Public Safety Headquarters in Virginia on September 11, 2020.

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October 2020: Emhoff gave Harris a masked kiss after the vice presidential debate.

October 2020: Emhoff gave Harris a masked kiss after the vice presidential debate.
Doug Emhoff and Kamala Harris after the vice presidential debate. ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images

Arguably, the most memorable part of the debate was when a gigantic fly landed on Mike Pence's head.

October 2020: Emhoff spoke at a parking lot rally in Denver, Colorado.

October 2020: Emhoff spoke at a parking lot rally in Denver, Colorado.
Doug Emhoff speaks at a rally in Denver, Colorado. Hyoung Chang/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images

If Biden and Harris are elected, Emhoff would be the nation's first second gentleman.

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