In the United States, the title of first gentleman may be accorded to a man who is married to the head of state of a state government, analogously to the unofficial use of
first lady for the wife or hostess of a head of state, including the wife of the
president of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
. Thus far there has been no first gentleman of the United States (i.e. male spouse of a president); however,
Doug Emhoff
Douglas Craig Emhoff (born October 13, 1964) is an American lawyer who is the second gentleman of the United States. He is married to the 49th vice president of the United States, Kamala Harris. As the first-ever husband of a vice president, Em ...
became the first second gentleman of the United States when his wife
Kamala Harris
Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who is the 49th vice president of the United States. She is the first female vice president and the highest-ranking female official in U.S. history, as well ...
became vice president in 2021.
The first man formally to serve as first gentleman was
James E. Ferguson in 1925, a former governor of Texas who was forced from office due to corruption charges, and whose wife
Miriam A. Ferguson
Miriam Amanda Wallace "Ma" Ferguson (June 13, 1875 – June 25, 1961) was an American politician who served two non-consecutive terms as the governor of Texas: from 1925 to 1927, and from 1933 to 1935. She was the first female governor of Texas, ...
later won the office. The first man to serve as first gentleman without having previously served as governor was Thomas Grasso in 1975, husband of Connecticut governor
Ella T. Grasso. In 2019, Colorado governor
Jared Polis
Jared Schutz Polis (; born May 12, 1975) is an American politician, entrepreneur, businessman, and philanthropist, serving as the 43rd governor of Colorado since January 2019. He served one term on the Colorado State Board of Education from 20 ...
' husband
Marlon Reis (who at the time was his partner), became the first same-sex partner to receive the title of First Gentleman (in addition to being the first same-sex partner of a sitting governor).
Even though Arizona has had the most female governors of any U.S. state with four female governors, only two of these governors were married to a first gentleman while in office. Six states have had more than one first gentleman: New Hampshire and Kansas, with three, and Arizona, Connecticut, Michigan, and Oregon, all numbering two.
First gentlemen by state
Currently serving
First gentlemen by U.S. territory
Currently serving
See also
*
List of current United States first spouses
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
*
List of female governors in the United States
As of November 2022, 45 women have served or are serving as the governor of a U.S. state (two acting governors due to vacancies) and three women have served or are serving as the governor of an unincorporated U.S. territory. Two women have ser ...
* "
Oh, Jeez
"Oh, Jeez" is the seventh episode in the twentieth season of the American animated television series '' South Park''. The 274th episode of the series overall, it first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 9, 2016.
The episode ...
" (2016), the seventh episode in the twentieth season of ''
South Park'', previously called "The Very First Gentleman".
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:First Gentlemen in the United States, List Of
Lists of American people
Lists of men
Men in the United States
Spouses of United States state governors
United States politics-related lists
Lists of spouses
Husbands