Chasten Buttigieg & Doug Emhoff destroyed Cher’s fundraising record at Fire Island event

Chasten Buttigieg and Doug Emhoff — the husbands of out Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Vice President Kamala Harris, respectively — hauled in $321,000 at a weekend fundraiser for Harris on Fire Island last Friday. Not only did their haul outdo the $200,000 raised by singing legend Cher during a 2016 Democratic fundraiser, but Emhoff reportedly had to be “smuggled” off the island, away from “hunks in bikini cut swimsuits” who were eager to meet the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee’s husband.

The Friday event reportedly occurred at the home of Marius Meland and Eng Kian Ooi in the Pines area of the gay enclave. Attendees paid between $250 and $10,000 for entry. The event had originally been scheduled as a fundraiser for President Joe Biden, but it sold out when Biden dropped out of the presidential race and named Harris as his replacement.

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Queer actors George Takei, Raven Symoné, and Zachary Quinto spoke at the event alongside numerous LGBTQ+ elected officials.

Democratic National Committee Andrew Tobias told Vanity Fair that the fundraiser raised $321,000, beating the $200,000 amount that Cher helped raise at a 2016 Fire Island event for then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

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During the Friday fundraiser, Chasten Buttigieg said that, in the first 24 hours after they found out they were going to become adoptive parents, their son was placed on a ventilator shortly after his birth. During this time, Emhoff and Harris placed a video call to the Buttigieges to show their support, forming a close bond with the same-sex couple even though Pete Buttigieg and Harris were opponents during the 2020 Democratic presidential primary. Harris later administered Pete Buttigieg’s oath of office when he joined Biden’s cabinet as Transportation Secretary in 2021.

Emhoff also reminded the crowd that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wants to overturn prior court decisions that helped win the rights “to do what you want in your home with who you love,” including the rights to contraception and consensual same-sex encounters. Emhoff was reportedly hanging out with gay friends when Biden dropped out from the race and named Harris as his successor.

While Chasten Buttigieg’s husband has been named as a potential running mate for Harris, Harris is also considering other candidates, including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, and Sen. Mark Kelly from Arizona.

Secret Service agents reportedly distracted “hunks in bikini cut swimsuits,” according to The Guardian, while Emhoff was “smuggled” off the island by security agents. One annoyed Fire Island resident who was delayed by security agents during Emhoff’s departure complained, “We can’t walk on the boardwalk because someone’s getting on a boat?”

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