They ran a campaign together, then love came later

It was at the bar that Mr. Blaettler asked him if he could kiss him. She said yes.

Intent on dating, they quickly struck up a relationship that they kept private for the remaining months of the campaign. The pandemic further complicated things, limiting how often they could spend time together.

In June, Mr. Blaettler left the campaign (Mr. Jones won the Democratic primary that month) and Ms. Marcus moved to Washington in December to work in the official congressional office after Mr. Jones won the general election. They met remotely for a year before Mr. Blaettler joined her in Washington. They lived there together for three years before moving to Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.

In August 2024, the couple took a trip to Lisbon. Before dinner, Mr. Blaettler suggested they take a walk on the beach, and the unsuspecting Ms. Marcus refused, not wanting to take off her heels. After some insistence, she agreed. It took Mr. Blaettler 30 seconds to get to his knees.

After this proposal, preparations to convert Mr. Blaettler to Judaism were underway. Ms. Marcus grew up Modern Orthodox and always knew she would marry a Jew. Mr. Blaettler, having grown up in a Catholic family, knew he would convert to marry Ms. Marcus.

On their wedding day, he was converted. On December 31, 2025, they were married at the Ravel Hotel in Long Island City in front of 175 guests. Rabbi Madeleine Fortney of Hebrew Union College presided over the ceremony.

Ms Marcus said her parents joked that they “just wanted to have a party and a wedding happened to be there”.

During the countdown, Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” played. They kissed. Champagne and sparklers immediately appeared. “It was a big boom time,” Ms. Marcus said.