‘Not just Doug Emhoff’s ex-wife’: meet film producer Kerstin Emhoff, who just clapped back at J.D. Vance’s ‘childless cat lady’ comments, and whose daughter Ella models for Balenciaga and Louis Vuitton

Jul 28 , 2024

Kerstin Emhoff is the ex-wife of second gentleman Doug Emhoff, who’s married to Kamala Harris. Photos: @secondgentleman, @kemhoff/Instagram

On Wednesday, the second gentleman’s ex – Hollywood film producer Kerstin Emhoff – hit back at criticism previously levelled at Kamala Harris by J.D. Vance that she was a ‘childless cat lady’

Kerstin Emhoff isn’t just mum to Mulberry and Balenciaga model Ella Emhoff, but a film producer who’s worked with everyone from Nicolas Cage and Elijah Wood to Oscar Isaac

Not all people get along with their exes after a break-up – let alone their former partners’ new spouses.

But that’s not the case for Doug Emhoff’s ex-wife, Kerstin Emhoff, who is not only friends with his current partner – vice-president Kamala Harris – but has even publicly come to her defence when criticism has been levelled against her by Republicans.

Vice-president Kamala Harris and her husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, have been married since 2014. Photo: AFP

On Wednesday, the second gentleman’s ex-wife supported Harris by clapping back at sexist comments made by vice-presidential nominee J.D. Vance referring to Harris and others as “childless cat ladies”, according to CNN.

“These are baseless attacks. For over 10 years, since Cole and Ella were teenagers, Kamala has been a co-parent with Doug and I,” Kerstin Emhoff shared in a statement to the network. “She is loving, nurturing, fiercely protective, and always present. I love our blended family and am grateful to have her in it.”

Ella Emhoff and her mum Kerstin Emhoff rocking elaborate headgear. Photo: @kemhoff/Instagram

Her statement comes just days after a video resurfaced of Vance criticising childfree public figures, per the network.

“It’s just a basic fact – you look at Kamala Harris, Pete Buttigieg, AOC – the entire future of the Democrats is controlled by people without children,” Vance told Tucker Carlson in a 2021 interview. “How does it make any sense that we’ve turned our country over to people who don’t really have a direct stake in it?” he went on to claim.

Here’s what we know about Doug Emhoff’s ex-wife – with whom he shares two children:

‘Not just Doug Emhoff’s ex-wife’: meet film producer Kerstin Emhoff, who just clapped back at J.D. Vance’s ‘childless cat lady’ comments, and whose daughter Ella models for Balenciaga and Louis Vuitton

Where is Kerstin Emhoff from?