Doug Emhoff, husband of Kamala Harris, acknowledges long-ago affair

Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, said Saturday that he had an extramarital affair during his first marriage, years before he met Harris.

The acknowledgment, released in a statement, came hours after a British tabloid reported that Emhoff had a previously undisclosed relationship with a teacher who worked at the elementary school his children attended in Culver City, California, approximately 15 years ago.

At the time, Emhoff, an entertainment lawyer, was married to Kerstin Emhoff, a film producer, with whom he had two children. The couple filed for divorce in 2009. Emhoff met Harris in 2013, and they married the following year.

“During my first marriage, Kerstin and I went through some tough times on account of my actions,” Emhoff said in the statement. “I took responsibility, and in the years since, we worked through things as a family and have come out stronger on the other side.”

The Biden campaign was aware of the affair before it decided to tap Harris as vice president in 2020, according to a person familiar with the vetting process, who spoke on condition of anonymity. In addition, this person said Harris knew of the affair before she married Emhoff in 2014.

According to an article published by The Daily Mail on Saturday, Emhoff had the relationship with a woman who at the time worked as a teacher at The Willows Community School, a private school in west Los Angeles.

The woman, who now lives on Long Island, in New York, did not respond to messages seeking comment.

In the years since their divorce, Emhoff and his ex-wife have frequently referred to each other as friends, and they have said they have worked to raise their children with Harris, whom they call a “co-parent.”

Kerstin Emhoff also has lately defended Harris. After Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, was named the vice-presidential nominee, critics began resurfacing remarks that he made in 2021 claiming the country was run by “childless cat ladies,” including Harris. Kerstin Emhoff called the attacks “baseless” and praised the vice president’s role in her family.

The former couple’s two children, now both adults, have also defended the vice president’s role in their upbringing. Ella Emhoff, in a social media post last week, wrote “how can you be ‘childless’ when you have cutie pie kids like Cole and I,” referring to herself and her brother.

In another statement Saturday, Kerstin Emhoff also addressed her husband’s affair, but she stopped short of blaming it for their divorce.

“Doug and I decided to end our marriage for a variety of reasons, many years ago,” she said. “He is a great father to our kids, continues to be a great friend to me and I am really proud of the warm and supportive blended family Doug, Kamala and I have built together.”

Doug Emhoff, who left his law practice when Harris was elected as President Joe Biden’s vice president, has become an integral and prominent part of Harris’ political operation. On Friday, he co-hosted a fundraiser on Fire Island, in New York, for the campaign, along with Chasten Buttigieg, the husband of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. The Democratic National Committee said the fundraiser raised $321,000.