Kamala Harris's husband Doug Emhoff set to break barriers as first Jew to become US' second gentleman
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris's husband, Doug Emhoff, is already a hit with feminists across the United States after he became the first-ever male spouse of a VP. Now, he is also set to add his name to another piece of history by becoming the first Jewish person married to a president or vice president. Historically, there has never been a Jewish president or vice president of the United States. It was not until the 1960 election that a non-Protestant was elected to either office. Nor has anyone who assumed the highest or the second-highest office ever been married to a Jewish spouse. In the US, spouses of the president and vice president have been women, known as First Lady and Second Lady, respectively.
According to the Times of Israel, friends have described the 56-year-old Emhoff as a less-than-observant Jew but admittedly one who has been shaped by Judaism and one who identifies strongly with the religion as well. The Jewish publication Forward has embraced the entertainment lawyer as the “Second Mensch," even going as far as tagging him “hot Jewish dad,” as the nation prepares for both the first Jewish family and the first interfaith Jewish family to occupy the vice presidential residence.
Although the couple is relatively private about their respective faiths and the traditions embraced in their households, it was reported that they smashed a glass at their wedding. Emhoff has also confessed that he was bar mitzvahed in a three-piece velour suit. When its reporter asked Emhoff’s mother Barbara about his religious upbringing, she was initially coy, but added: “He was bar mitzvahed in New Jersey, I can tell you that.” He was born in Brooklyn and raised in New Jersey and he has happy memories of Jewish summer camp, where he won awards in athletics.
Harris also has a deep respect for her husband's religion and culture. “So having grown up in the Bay Area, I fondly remember those Jewish national fund boxes that we would use to collect donations to plant trees for Israel,” she said at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee in 2017. “Years later when I visited Israel for the first time, I saw the fruits of that effort and the Israeli ingenuity that has truly made a desert bloom.” Since being elected in 2016, Harris has spoken twice at the annual policy conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
Harris has also praised Israel’s Supreme Court building. “The beauty of the architecture and spirit of design left a lasting impression — the straight lines in the building represent the immutable nature of truth, while the curved glass and walls were built to represent the fluid nature of finding justice,” she told the J. The Jewish News of Northern California in 2016. “The Court, like Israel, is a beautiful home to democracy and justice in a region where radicalism and authoritarianism all too often shape government.”
Will Christmas stockings be stuffed with chocolate gelt in the White House next year and Hanukkah candle-lighting ceremonies be held? We will have to wait and see.
Previously we reported that '#SecondDude' started to trend as soon as multiple news organizations called the 2020 election in favor of President-elect Joe Biden. Emhoff created history, alongside his wife, by becoming the first male spouse of a vice president. Since there is no blueprint to follow for Emhoff, it will be left to be seen how the second gentleman handles all the pressures of the job.
After Harris made her campaign debut in Wilmington, Delaware in August, after she was picked as Biden's running mate, the now-President-Elect humorously said, "Doug, you're going to have to learn what it means to be a barrier-breaker yourself in this job you're about to take on: America's first second gentleman." In fact, from the time Harris dropped out of the Democratic presidential nominee race to her becoming vice president-elect, Emhoff has actively supported his wife on social media. He also has a fan following who call themselves the “#DougHive”.