Emily Threlkeld Is Harold Ford Jr's Wife – Facts about Her (2024)

Fashion consultant Emily Threlkeld did not expect or want the media attention she gets as Harold Ford Jr.'s wife. Over the years, she has found ways to manage the spotlight, even sitting down for a New York Times profile.

Emily Threlkeld Ford's dream was to be a fashion designer before she enrolled in a more practical degree. After graduation, she found work in the fashion industry and eventually co-founded a brand.

After their extravagant Miami wedding, the couple lived in a Manhattan condo that her mother bought them. They later put the property on the market for around $1.4 million.

Emily Ford attends the Greater Talent Network 30th anniversary party at the United Nations on May 2, 2012, in New York City. | Source: Getty Images

Emily Worked with Famous Celebrities

Emily Frances Threlkeld was born to Tom Threlkeld and Deborah Walker on January 2, 1981. Her parents divorced when she was two, and her mother soon remarried a restaurateur from Naples, Florida; they parted ways in 2003.

She obtained her degree in business and marketing from the University of Miami in 2003 and headed to Manhattan to work as a publicist for Nina Ricci. The fashion lover became the assistant to the president of the Nina Ricci and Carolina Herrera labels' holding company.

As styling celebrities was part of her job description, she worked with Renée Zellweger. She matched Jada Pinkett Smith with a corseted gold gown from Carolina Herrera for the 2007 Academy Awards.

(L-R) Emily Ford, Debrah Beard and Brittany Weekley attend "Mr. Ken Fulk's Magical World" New York Launch Party at Ken Fulk Tribeca on October 13, 2016, in New York City. | Source: Getty Images

The same weekend her mother became acquainted with her third husband, Anson Beard Jr., a former exec at Morgan Stanley, at a wedding in 2003; she also met Ford. Deborah thought the politician would be a good match for her daughter and introduced the pair.

During the congressman's failed Senate campaign in 2006, Emily experienced the downsides of being a politician's girlfriend.

The Republican National Committee paid for a billboard directed at the congressman of a blond woman asking her to call her. The N.A.A.C.P. slammed the ad for playing into racist fears, as it was widely known that she was with a Caucasian woman.

The Miami grad endeavored to deal with the barrage of press, often "untrue and harsh," as it came. Her husband's frequent praise of her on national platforms like the "Colbert Report" further intensified the spotlight on her.

In the 2010s, Emily co-founded the swimwear label Basta Surf, which became a favorite with Jessica Alba. Nina Agdal, Chrissy Teigen, and Lily Aldridge wore pink and orange Basta Surf bikini bottoms on the 50th Anniversary issue of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue in 2014.

The brand's social media has not been updated since September 2016, when they promoted a "major sale." The design consultant still has a link to the swimwear label's website on her Twitter account; however, the domain now hosts a generic investment blog.

Harold Ford and Emily Ford attend the Apollo in the Hamptons 2016 party at The Creeks on August 20, 2016, in East Hampton, New York. | Source: Getty Images

Emily Eventually Took Her Husband's Surname

The couple got engaged in 2017 at the Ritz Hotel in Paris, saying their "I dos" at Miami's Trinity Cathedral Episcopal Church on April 26, 2008. It was a lavish celebration with big numbers; there were 28 people at their wedding party and 300 invited guests.

A columnist detailed the tea Emily's doting mother-in-law, Dorothy Bowles Ford, threw her before the wedding. Dorothy reportedly touched the bride's cheek and called her "my baby."

Harold Ford Jr. and his wife Emily Threlkeld Ford arrive for the Robin Hood Foundation gala in New York, on Monday, May 10, 2010. | Source: Getty Images

Harold's friends also approved of his life partner. During a speech at the reception, one of them said that Emily was who they envisioned for their friend, who had been a bachelor well into his late thirties. She took his last name after their union.

The former congressman holds his wife's opinion in high regard. In an interview, he referred to her as his 'director of research,' which she clarified by saying she helps him out in her downtime.

Emily has her husband's ear on subjects close to her heart. She had a gay step-uncle and a lesbian aunt, whom she brought up during their conversations on same-sex marriage.

Emily Is a Mother of 2

Days before Christmas, Emily and Harold welcomed their first child, Georgia Walker Ford, in December 2013 at New York-Presbyterian.

Her names are in honor of her paternal great-grandmother Georgia and her maternal grandmother's maiden name. The MSNBC contributor was excited for his family to spend their first Christmas together.

Emily gave birth to a third generation, Harold Eugene Ford III, on May 17, 2015. On September 19, 2019, the kids posed for their first day of kindergarten with their parents.

Harold Jr. wished his wife a happy birthday in 2019 by thanking her for being loving, caring, and believing in her family. He credited her for "keeping things right" in their home.