Vice President Kamala Harris, former California Attorney General (opens in new tab) and Senator who took office on January 20, 2021, has a loving and supportive family. Her husband, Douglas Emhoff (opens in new tab), has two children, Cole and Ella, to whom Harris is "Momala." Harris has spoken publicly about her close bond with her stepchildren and how much Cole and Ella mean to her. Now, with her new role and increased visibility, we are likely to hear even more about them. Here is what we know about them and what they have said about their relationship.

Cole and Ella are named after John Coltrane and Ella Fitzgerald. As Harris writes in ELLE (open in new tab), she was very cautious about her relationship with her parents when she first started dating Emhoff, as she herself is the child of divorced parents.

"Doug and I were determined that I would not insert myself into their lives until we had established that we were in this for the long haul. I didn't want to insert myself into their lives as a temporary presence because children need consistency and I didn't want to let them down. There is nothing more painful than disappointing a child."

But she needn't have worried. The first meeting went well and Harris fell in love with both children. She was nervous at first and wanted to make a good first impression, so she "picked up a tin of cookies and tied a ribbon with a bow. They loved it. [Cole and Ella couldn't have been more welcoming. They were bright, talented, funny kids who grew up to be fine adults. I was already crazy about Doug, but I think it was Cole and Ella who drew me in.

Emhoff and Harris were officially married in 2015. To their children, Harris is now a "momala":

In Yiddish, "mamaleh (open in new tab)" means "little mama," and indeed, at their wedding the couple honored Emhoff's Jewish faith (open in new tab). Besides, it is a sweet combination of "kamala" and "mama."

In an interview with "Glamour" (opens in new tab), the two children talked about the first time they met Kamala. 'I think for all of us it was love at first sight. We had a great night at my favorite restaurant, the Reel Inn. We took a long drive down the Pacific Coast Highway listening to music. Her taste in music, food, and interaction with Doug. She would tease Doug. It was perfect," Cole said. As time went on, I began to understand who she was and what her career had been like. I had a new appreciation for what she had accomplished, and it was very moving."

And Ella added 'I think I was about to enter high school when I met her, so it was an equally intense time, but for a different, more troubling reason. When he was talking about her, it seemed so serious. When we met, it just felt so natural, like it wasn't a big deal. It felt like we had known each other for a long time. I think the important thing was to first get to know her as a person, not as a politician."

"When Harris decided to run for president, she explained: 'They are the source of my boundless love and pure joy, and one thing I can say for sure is that without them my heart would not be complete and my life would not be fulfilled.'

Obviously, their schedules (especially Harris) are crazy, but it is clear that they still try to make time for each other:

They used to get together as a family every Sunday for dinner. More recently, Doug, Kamala, and the kids have started doing Zoom calls every Sunday. (ELLE was present for one of those Zooms. You can watch it here (opens in new tab)).

Cole graduated from the University of Colorado and works as an executive assistant for Plan B Entertainment (opens in new tab). Incidentally, the company was founded by Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston when they were still dating, according to Variety (opens in new tab), and Brad later took over ownership.

Ella is a student at Parsons School of Design pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Apparel and Textiles (opens in new tab). She is a professional knitter and makes sweaters, shorts, pants, and other things I really want in my closet. Lucky for me, she also accepts custom orders on her website (opens in new tab).

Kamala spoke candidly about how much their lives have changed since she was elected vice president (opens in new tab). We've been out of politics for a long time," he told me, "so we're not used to it. I feel like I'm still getting used to it," Cole said. Ella added, "I think the idea of sharing our parents with the world is a little insane."

Cole also shared this tidbit: "I was in fourth grade when they got together, and I remember someone tweeting. It was a picture of Kamala at the Kavanaugh hearing, and someone tweeted, 'I hate seeing that face and having to explain why I was late for curfew.' I thought, 'I've literally had to do that.'"

Yes, that's right. She and Doug's ex-wife, Kirsten, are also close, and Harris jokes that "modern families are a little too functional." Kirstin was fully supportive of their relationship from the beginning. She told Marie Claire (opens in new tab) that when he revealed their relationship, she just said, "Wow, cool. Don't mess this up."

Kerstin offered her creative talents and connections (she is co-founder and CEO of the production company Prettybird) to Harris' presidential campaign. She recalled to Marie Claire magazine, "I was like, 'What does my ex-wife want?'"

Harris wrote of their unlikely friendship and what it meant to the Emhoff children: "To know Cole and Ella is to know that their mother, Kirstin, is a wonderful mother. Kirstin and I hit it off and became dear friends. She and I became a pair of cheerleaders who often annoyed Ella in the bleachers at her swim meets and basketball games.

Both Cole and Ella were front row center at Harris' inauguration to cheer her on with her father. Their appearance at the inauguration made it clear that although they were Camara's stepdaughters, they were the second daughter and second son, just like the vice president's own children.

We can also talk about Ella's outfit, 'She was instantly labeled a style icon, wearing a Miu Miu with a white collar that had a serious RBG vibe. 'Ella Emhoff, second daughter, run me over with that coat,' wrote Glamour magazine (opens in new tab)."