Kamala Harris’ Husband Acknowledges Affair During 1st Marriage

Doug Emhoff says that he "took responsibility" and since the affair, has "worked through things as a family"

The post Kamala Harris’ Husband Acknowledges Affair During 1st Marriage appeared first on TheWrap.

Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, Kamala Harris’ husband, issued a statement Saturday acknowledging an affair he had during his first marriage. Alleged details of the relationship were published by Britain’s Daily Mail. Rumors of the affair were first shared online by far-right commentator Laura Loomer earlier this week.

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

Emhoff and ex-wife Kerstin ended their 16-year marriage in 2009, with a divorce settlement filed in 2010. He did not address the specifics of the Daily Mail’s report, which stated that Emhoff had cheated on his first wife with their daughter Ella’s nanny. The story also alleges that Emhoff impregnated the woman, who also taught at their children’s private school in Culver City.

Harris and Emhoff met in 2013 on a blind date while he worked as an entertainment lawyer and she was California’s attorney general. They married the following year.

CNN reported that Joe Biden’s vetting committee was aware of the relationship and surrounding circumstances during Harris’ vetting process to become his running mate in 2020, citing an anonymous source familiar with the conversations. Emhoff also told Harris about the affair before they married.

In a separate statement reported by CNN, Kerstin said, “Doug and I decided to end our marriage for a variety of reasons, many years ago. 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.”

Emhoff has regretted the circumstances around his affair for a long time and knew it was possible they would become public, a source familiar with Emhoff told CNN. Kerstin has spoken positively of Harris on multiple occasions, including defending her recently from attacks by Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance.

Emhoff has been on the campaign trail in support of his wife’s candidacy. The campaign just released merchandise featuring a throwback photo of Emhoff earlier this week, which had gone viral after many online noted how attractive Emhoff appeared in the image. Posts that spread on social media Saturday, including a popular parody post retweeted more than 5,000 times with more than 420,000 views, pointed out the irony of his marriage being questioned by Donald Trump due to his own history of repeated affairs and being an adjudicated rapist.

Citing a close friend with direct knowledge of both the affair and the pregnancy, the Daily Mail adds that their source said the woman did not keep the child. However, her social media does show a video of a baby in 2009, when her child would have been born. Another source confirmed the affair and that the woman did not keep the child.

The woman did not deny the story when approached by the Daily Mail, according to the outlet. She declined to comment on the allegations but said, “I’m kind of freaked out right now.” Emhoff’s ex-wife Kerstin did not comment when reached by the Daily Mail.

A mother whose children attended the school prior to 2009 told the Daily Mail that she was aware of the affair, expressing disgust with Emhoff but praise for the woman. Several other sources told the Mail that they would not comment further without the woman’s permission.

Since the alleged affair, the woman went on to work for Broadway Video and later Amazon’s Audible.

The post Kamala Harris’ Husband Acknowledges Affair During 1st Marriage appeared first on TheWrap.