During the 2024 vice presidential debate between JD Vance and Tim Walz, viewers took notice when Usha Vance joined her husband onstage as the candidates shook hands. The moment reflected Usha’s growing visibility throughout the 2024 presidential race and her husband’s journey as the vice president during their first year in Washington, D.C.
While addressing the crowd at the RNC, Usha highlighted how her background differs from her husband’s. “I grew up in San Diego, in a middle-class community, with two loving parents, both immigrants from India, and a wonderful sister,” she said, adding that their meeting and marriage is “a testament to this great country.”
Learn more about Usha, her marriage to JD and their children, below.
Who Is Usha Vance?
First Lady Usha (née Chilukuri) was born in San Diego County, California, on January 6, 1986. Her family is part of the Telugu Brahmin community. They migrated to the United States in the 1980s from India, and Usha’s parents speak Telugu. They raised her in the upper-middle-class neighborhood Rancho Peñasquitos, San Diego.
While attending Yale Law School, Usha studied history and was an active member of various associations on campus, such as the Yale Law Journal as well as being a member of the Phi Beta Kappa sorority.
Upon graduating from college, Usha worked as a law clerk for several federal-level judges, including Brett Kavanaugh.
Usha reportedly voted in the Democratic primaries in 2014 but voted in the Republican primaries in 2022 when her husband was a candidate.
When Did Usha and JD Vance Meet?
Usha and JD met while attending Yale. According to the Daily Beast, the couple’s professor Amy Chua encouraged them to get closer in their relationship. Usha and JD eventually got married in 2014 during a ceremony in Kentucky.
Does JD Vance Have Kids With Usha?
Yes, Usha and JD share three children together: Ewan, Vivek and Mirabel Vance. The spouses welcomed Ewan in June 2017, followed by Vivek in February 2020 and Mirabel in December 2021.
JD has spoken out about his family. During his speech at the July 2024 Republican National Convention, Donald Trump‘s VP choice noted that his “most important American dream was becoming a good husband and a good dad” and that he “wanted to give [his] kids the things that [he] didn’t have when [he] was growing up.”
While directly addressing his kids, JD joked, “If you’re watching, Daddy loves you very much, but get your butts in bed, it’s 10 o’clock.”
In January 2026, the couple announced that they were expecting their fourth child, a son.
