Momala / Mamala

About

Momala, also spelled Mamala, is a nickname and term of endearment for American politician and Vice President Kamala Harris, which started as the way her stepchildren, Cole and Ella Emhoff referred to her. Over time, "Momala" turned into an ironic and sincere way to discuss Harris and her supposed maternal qualities online, particularly among members of the KHive. In late April 2024, Drew Barrymore asked Harris to "be Momala of the country" during an interview on her daytime talk show, leading to increased online usage of the nickname that was then further fueled by discourse in the summer of that year amid rumors of Harris running for president and replacing Joe Biden.

Origin

On May 10th, 2019, Kamala Harris published an essay in Elle magazine describing her family life as a stepmother to two children, Ella and Cole. In the essay, which was published while she was running for president in the 2020 Democratic primary. In the essay, Harris wrote:

A few years later when Doug and I got married, Cole, Ella, and I agreed that we didn’t like the term “stepmom.” Instead they came up with the name “Momala.”

Harris posted on Instagram the same day about being "Momala," earning over 51,000 likes over the course of five years (seen below.^[2]

Spread

Kamala Harris and others used the nickname throughout her vice presidency in social media posts and comments, but widespread use of the name came into broad public attention following an interview on the Drew Barrymore Show on April 29th, 2024, in which Barrymore clasped Harris' hands and asked her to be the "Momala" of the country (seen below).^[3]

Numerous users online commented on the clip of Barrymore and memed it, many describing it as cringe. For example, X user @henryevil posted about the clip on April 29th (seen below), earning over 17,000 likes in just over two months.^[4]

Following President Joe Biden's lackluster performance at the first 2024 presidential debate, speculation mounted that Harris would run for President instead of Biden.

Memes using the "Momala" nickname were then created about a possible Harris candidacy, such as the one (seen below) by user @EmmaVigeland posted to X on July 2nd, 2024, which received over 11,000 likes in the course of three days.^[5]

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References