Barack and Michelle Obama Seen Together After Divorce Rumors
The couple made their first public appearance together in four months.
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Barack and Michelle Obama made their first public appearance together since rumors that the pair were divorcing began to spread.
The Obamas enjoyed a dinner at Osteria Mozza in Washington D.C., giving restaurant-goers the chance to catch a glimpse of the former president and first lady as they walked out of their private dining room.
The pair waved at the crowd as they made their way through the dining hall to cheers and applause. The former president even spoke to a few patrons and staff members before heading out.
This is the first time the couple has been spotted out in public together since December. After teaming up to support Kamala Harris during her presidential election campaign, the Obamas did not make any public appearances together in 2025 until now.
Though the pair still posted photos together on their social media, rumors began to swirl when Barack Obama attended several high-profile events alone, most notably President Donald Trump’s inauguration and Jimmy Carter’s funeral.
The former president continued to shared photos of him and Michelle, posting a photo of him and “the love of my life” for her birthday in January, as well as on Valentine’s Day.
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“Thirty-two years together and you still take my breath away,” the post read.
But it wasn’t until earlier this month that the former first lady firmly shut down any speculation around her marriage once and for all on the April 9 episode of Sophia Bush’s Work in Progress podcast.
“And that’s the thing that we as women struggle with— disappointing people,” the former first lady said. “I mean, so much so that this year people couldn’t even fathom that I was making a choice for myself. That they had to assume that my husband and I are divorcing.”
“This couldn’t be a grown woman just making a set of decisions herself, right? But that’s what society does to us. We start actually going, what am I? What am I doing? What am I doing this for?” she added. “And if it doesn’t fit into the sort of stereotype of what people think we should do, then it gets labeled as something negative and horrible.”
Michelle Obama clarified that after spending years in the public eye, she just wanted to step back from everything and “make some big girl decisions” for herself.
“Now is the time for me to start asking myself these hard questions of, ‘Who do I truly want to be every day?’ And that changes,” the former first lady said.
While taking a break from the spotlight, Michelle Obama began a podcast called IMO with her brother Craig Robinson, where they talk about life and their childhood in Chicago together. The first episode was published in March.
Barack and Michelle Obama will celebrate their 33rd wedding anniversary this fall.
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