MANILA – Douglas Emhoff, husband of United States Vice President Kamala Harris, will be leading Washington DC’s delegation to the inauguration of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., President Joseph Biden announced Monday.

Marcos will be sworn in as the Philippines’ 17th president on June 30.

“As Second Gentleman, Mr. Emhoff is working to share the priorities of the Biden-Harris Administration with people across the country and around the world,” the White House said, adding that Emhoff had traveled dozens of states and two countries during his first year as the second gentleman.

The members of the delegation he will lead include the following:

– Heather Variava, Chargé d’Affaires, ad interim, US Embassy Manila

– Bobby Scott, Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, United States Representative (D), Virginia

– Nani Coloretti, Deputy Director, Office of Management and Budget

– Admiral James Winnefeld, Jr. (Ret.), former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

– Edgard Kagan, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for East Asia and Oceania, National Security Council

– Chantale Wong, US Director of the Asian Development Bank

To recall, Biden was the first world leader to personally call and congratulate Marcos after his landslide win in the May 2022 elections.

During the call, he said he looked forward to further strengthening the US-Philippines alliance while expanding bilateral cooperation in a wide range of areas, including the fight against coronavirus disease 2019, climate crisis, promoting broad-based economic growth, and respect for human rights. (PNA)