Second Lady of the United States

Second Lady of the United States

14 second ladies have gone on to become first ladies during their husband’s terms as president. The current second lady is Karen Pence, since husband Mike Pence became the 48th vice president in January 2017. Doug Emhoff, husband of Kamala Harris, the first female vice president-elect, will become the first second gentleman in January 2021.

About Second Lady of the United States in brief

Summary Second Lady of the United StatesSecond Lady of the United States is informal title held by the wife of the vice president of the U.S. Fourteen second ladies have gone on to become first ladies during their husband’s terms as president. The current second lady is Karen Pence, since husband Mike Pence became the 48th vice president in January 2017. In January 2021, Doug Emhoff, husband of Kamala Harris, the first female vice president-elect, will become the first second gentleman. He will be the first two spouse to have a surname differing from that of a U. S. vice president. There are four living former second ladies: Marilyn Quayle; Tipper Gore; Lynne Cheney; and Jill Biden, wife of Joe Biden.

The role of the first lady as White House hostess dates from the beginning of the republic, with a few exceptions. It was generally not until the late 20th century and early 21st century that vice-presidential wives took on public roles that attracted significant media attention. In one notable exception, Floride Calhoun was a central figure in the Petticoat Affair, a social-political scandal which involved the social ostracism of Secretary of War John H. Eaton and his wife Margaret O’Neill Eaton. The last to do this was Barbara Bush, who was married to George H. W. Bush, the 43rd vice president from 1981 to 1989.