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Doug Emhoff’s ex-wife has declared that she’s a more fierce supporter of her ex-husband’s wife Kamala Harris than Melania Trump is of her own current husband Donald Trump.
Despite divorcing 14 years ago and the second gentleman admitting to having had an affair during their marriage, Kerstin Emhoff still has a famously close relationship with her ex-husband and Harris and has spoken out about how the three of them together co-parent Ella and Cole Emhoff.
This week, Kerstin has joined their “blended” family for the first two days of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago – prompting one social media user to draw parallels between her and Melania.
“Kamala’s husband’s ex-wife is supporting her more enthusiastically than Trump’s current wife is supporting him,” wrote television producer Ben Wexler on X alongside a photograph of a smiling Kerstin at the convention.
Kerstin, a 57-year-old film producer, reshared the post and wrote: “Damn right.”
Having attended the DNC for the first two days, Kerstin has already doubled the appearances Melania made at this year’s Republican National Convention where her husband was named the Republican party’s official presidential nominee.
During her time there, she has been sharing posts on social media.
In one post on Instagram, Kerstin shared a selfie with Harris’s running mate Tim Walz and her children Ella and Cole.
“It was like new members of the family,” she captioned the post.
Kerstin has consistently vouched for Harris both on the political stage and as a co-parent for the Emhoff children, including joining her 2021 inauguration as the vice president.
Last month, when JD Vance’s comments attacking Harris and other Democrats as “childless cat ladies” resurfaced, Kerstin slammed the Republican vice presidential candidate.
“These are baseless attacks,” she said in a statement to CNN.
“For over 10 years, since Cole and Ella were teenagers, Kamala has been a co-parent with Doug and I. She is loving, nurturing, fiercely protective, and always present.”
Kerstin added: “I love our blended family and am grateful to have her in it.”
Harris’s modern and less traditional family dynamic has taken center stage at the DNC, with the vice president’s stepchildren and husband also in attendance every day so far.
On Tuesday night, both her husband and stepson Cole took to the stage to throw their support behind her campaign and open up about their family life.
During his keynote speech, Doug celebrated Harris as his wife, stepmother to his children and potential future president.
As well as defining her as a “joyful” political warrior who can stand up to bullies, he also shared a more personal tribute – as well as including an anecdote about a toe-curling voicemail from his first ever call to Harris that she makes him listen to every anniversary.
“Wherever she’s needed, however she’s needed, Kamala rises to the occasion. And she did it for me and my family,” he told the jam-packed crowd.
“And now that the country needs her, she’s showing you what we already know: she’s ready to lead.”
Doug added that meeting Harris was the most pivotal moment in his life and said that she will be “exactly the right president”.
The second gentleman was introduced to the stage by his 30-year-old son Cole, who shared a touching video about their family dynamics and how his “goofy dad” was thrust into the world of politics.
In the video, Cole noted that a decade ago, when Doug and Harris married, Kamala became “Momala”.
Their family then acclimatised to the world of politics in the years that followed.
“Our blended family wasn’t used to politics or the spotlight, but when Kamala became senator, we were all excited to step up. Especially my dad,” he said in the video.
“Then Kamala became vice president. It felt like Doug was a bit out of place on Capitol Hill. I thought, ‘What is my goofy dad doing here?’”
A win for Harris in November wouldn’t just mean the first female president, the first Black female president and the first Asian-American president, it would also bring about the very first, first gentleman, Cole noted.
Doug is already the first second gentleman and Jewish person to be a White House principal.
“We might not look like other families in the White House,” Cole concluded. “But we are ready to represent all families in America.”
Cole’s sister Ella has also been present for every day of the DNC so far – seen sporting a Harris-Walz camo hat.
