Kamala Harris’ stepdaughter Ella Emhoff makes high-fashion debut at Balenciaga show

She signed to IMG Models in February following her appearance at the US presidential inauguration

Ella Emhoff during NYFW, February 2021 (Getty Images for NYFW: The Shows)

Kamala Harris’ stepdaughter, Ella Emhoff, made her high-fashion runway debut as she walked in the Balenciaga show in Paris this week.

The 22-year-old, who's father, Doug Emhoff, is married to the US Vice President, took to the catwalk at Balenciaga’s first haute couture show in more than 50 years since the designer closed the doors of its atelier in 1968.

Kanye West, James Harden and Anna Wintour were among the front-row guests at the show which saw Emhoff don a black two-piece suit, with a floor-length padded silk opera coat.

Emhoff walked in the first segment of the show, which opened with a set of all-black looks including wool suits, washed denim and museum-worthy hats by London-based milliner Philip Treacy.

Her debut comes just six months after she signed with IMG Models at the end of January.

The Parsons School of Design alumni made headlines during Harris’s inauguration when she was photographed in an embellished tweed Miu Miu coat.

At the time, IMG Models president Ivan Bart told The New York Times, “Ella communicates this moment in time. There’s a cheekiness and a joy she exudes.”

Emhoff previously denied that her inauguration appearance jump-started her modelling career, telling Vogue that she met with Bart in 2019 and a conversation about her joining the agency had been in progress since.

She walked in a fashion show for the first time during New York Fashion Week in February, when she modelled for Proenza Schouler. Speaking to Vogue about the experience, Emhoff said she was a “little nervous”.

“It was a perfect first experience in the fashion world. I definitely lost a little sleep the night before … I’m walking for the first time. I’m in a professional environment like that for the first time … the anticipation was really high,” she said.

Then, in April, she teamed up with designer Batsheva Hay for a knitwear collaboration. The collection had just three pieces, a pastel crocheted vest, a ruffle-trimmed corset and a knitted bag.

Emhoff’s father, Doug, has been married to Harris since 2014. Ella and her brother Cole are from his previous marriage with film producer Kerstin Emhoff, which ended in 2008.