Donald Trump-Kamala Harris race rocked by domestic violence allegations against Doug Emhoff

The US presidential election has been up-ended by claims of violent abuse against women; as battleground polls see a shift and the VP debate fallout continues. Follow updates.

The US presidential election has been up-ended by claims of domestic violence against the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris.

Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, billed by the Democratic Party as a trailblazer for a new “wife guy” masculinity, is alleged to have slapped his ex-girlfriend in the face for flirting with another man at a “star-studded gala”.

The bombshell claim comes as a slew of new polling sees Donald Trump take the lead in several key battleground states and the fallout from JD Vance’s debate against Tim Walz continues to momentum to the Republican ticket.

As the election cycle entered its October surprise phase, Mr Emhoff was accused of striking his ex, a “successful New York attorney” during a booze-fuelled altercation in 2012.

According to The Daily Mail, the woman and her three friends who made the allegations asked not to be named for fear of retaliation.

Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff married in 2014, two years after the alleged incident occurred. Picture: AFP

Neither the vice president nor the second gentleman have yet commented on the allegations. Picture: AFP

Mr Emhoff, who separated from his first wife after impregnating his children’s nanny, met Ms Harris the year after the alleged incident and the pair married in 2014.

According to the newspaper, Mr Emhof and the woman – identified by the pseudonym “Jane” – had been dating for three months when the incident occurred during a ritzy dinner in Southern France.

Jane’s friends invited them to the Hotel du Cap, near Cannes, for a charity auction filled with Hollywood celebrities and executives in support of the Foundation for AIDS Research, according to The Daily Mail, which did not get a response to the claims from either Jane or Mr Emhoff.

“It was hard to hear her because she was sobbing. She told me she was with a guy and he hit her,” the newspaper quoted Jane’s friend as saying.

“It was something like 3am. They were trying to get out of there and they both had been drinking. There was a gigantic line for taxis,” they added. “[Jane] went up to one of the valet guys, offered him 100 Euros or whatever, to get to the head of the line. She told me she put her hand on his shoulder. Doug apparently thought that she was flirting, and came over and slapped her in the face.”

The newspaper quoted Jane’s friends as saying that she “slapped him back” and “broke up with him that night”.

“She was so furious, she slapped him on one side, and then on the other cheek with the other hand,” a friend said.

Mr Emhoff has been a spokesperson against toxic masculinity, with White House press secretary Jen Psaki saying that he’s “reshaped the perception of masculinity”.

“I’ve always been like this,’ Mr Emhoff told Ms Psaki. “To me, it’s the right thing to do, support women.”

Mr Emhoff previously admitted to impregnating his daughter’s nanny Najen Naylor, but it has been unreported what happened to the baby.

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Trump Harris US election

‘CONFIRMED MY CHOICE’: TRUMP PRAISES VANCE

Donald Trump praised JD Vance performance against “low IQ disaster” Tim Walz, saying the debate confirmed his choice of running mate.

“JD was fantastic last night -- it just reconfirmed my choice,” Trump told Fox News Digital. “There was a brilliance to what he did,” he said, adding that Walz “embarrassed himself and the Democrat Party.”

“Tim Walz proved to be a man that doesn’t have it in any way shape or form for the office that he is seeking, though I would put him a large number of steps above Kamala,” Trump said.

Walz was bad enough, but he was made to look worse by Vance’s performance, Trump said.

“This is what the country needs; smart people, not people that can’t put two sentences together,” Trump said.

MELANIA ‘EMBRACES BOLDNESS’

Melania Trump is spruiking new merch in the latest election season tchotchke.

After Donald Trump’s trading cards and crypto coins, Mrs Trump has come to the trading post with a Lady Liberty necklace.

“Embrace boldness in your style this season with the “Vote Freedom” necklace, which features the iconic Lady Liberty,” she said. “A tribute to America’s enduring commitment to freedom, this piece is a statement of pride and empowerment.”

The cost is about $A108 for the “brass and enamel ornament”, which includes Mrs Trump’s autograph.

Embrace boldness in your style this season with the “Vote Freedom” necklace, which features the iconic Lady Liberty. A tribute to America's enduring commitment to freedom, this piece is a statement of pride and empowerment.https://t.co/vy9BJxUa4Dpic.twitter.com/I3E8g1OdXT

— MELANIA TRUMP (@MELANIATRUMP) October 2, 2024

TRUMP TAKES SLIGHT LEAD IN SUN BELT, CLOSES IN ON RUST BELT

Donald Trump has lurched ahead in several polls of key battleground states across the Sun Belt.

As Mr Trump and Kamala Harris enter the final month neck and neck, polls of Arizona, Nevada, North Carolina and Georgia showed the former president with a slight edge.

InsiderAdvantage found Mr Trump with a one-point lead in Arizona, Nevada and North Carolina, while they are tied in Georgia.

Quinnipiac University, meanwhile, gave Trump a 6 point lead in Georgia and a two-point lead in North Carolina.

The Washington Post also found Mr Trump leading in North Carolina, by two points, while New Emerson College Polling found Mr Trump slightly in front by one point in North Carolina and three points in Arizona.

In the Rust Belt, new polls from the Trafalgar Group show Mr Trump leading by two points in Michigan and one point in Wisconsin. A second Wisconsin poll from Marquette University Law School has Ms Harris up by five points. If the Sun Bolt polling is accurate and Mr Trump posts major wins in Arizona, Nevada, North Carolina and Georgia then Ms Harris would need to run the board of the three “blue wall” states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

Originally published as Donald Trump-Kamala Harris race rocked by domestic violence allegations against Doug Emhoff