Who Is Vanna White’s Husband? All About John Donaldson (and Their Surprise Wedding!)

Vanna White and her longtime love, John Donaldson, are married!

The Wheel of Fortune icon and Donaldson began dating in 2012, following her amicable split from ex-husband George Santo Pietro. During an October 2019 conversation with PEOPLE, White recalled meeting Donaldson at a barbecue and thinking, “He’s really cute.”

“It just works,” the mother of two added of their relationship. “He lets me be me, I let him be him. There is no drama.” In October 2023, White told PEOPLE that although she and Donaldson had been together for over a decade, they weren’t in any rush to head to the altar.

“I mean, we’ve been together 12 years, and I feel like we are married,” she said. “Do we have to get married? No, because we feel comfortable in our relationship. […] I know that he’s the one. He knows I’m the one.”

While she said that the pair had already felt as though they were “married” in their eyes, they officially wed years later, announcing the news on Instagram on Jan. 21. “Surprise! We got married!” she wrote.

So, who is Vanna White’s husband? Here’s everything to know about John Donaldson and his relationship with the Wheel of Fortune star.

He grew up in California

Donaldson was born and raised in Santa Monica, Calif. Since he was young, he knew he wanted to work in the construction industry, a career that began when he accepted a job as a laborer in the San Fernando Valley.

His early duties ranged from packing lumber for $5 per hour on a commercial job site to becoming a carpenter driving around neighborhoods looking for work on framing crews. His hard work was recognized, eventually leading to his head foreman gig working on luxury homes in the Hollywood Hills.

Donaldson’s résumé is star-studded, with names including Richard Dreyfuss, Dan Akroyd and Martin Mull. Eventually, he earned his contractor’s license and picked up various construction projects of his own — in part which led him to his ultimate goal of running his own business.

He owns a construction company in California

Donaldson owns his own construction company, JDC Construction + Development Group, in California. He is the president and building developer at the company, which was previously known as John R. Donaldson, Inc. until July 2014.

“JDC prides itself on its tradesman roots and the insight which years of hands on experience provides to property owners, architects and engineers in developing realistic plans for revitalization projects, as well as finding appropriate solutions to renovation challenges,” the company states on its website.

Introduced in 1987 and based in Southern California, JDC specializes in “the restoration and rehabilitation of Multifamily properties and now the development of new ground up multifamily projects.”

According to the site, Donaldson built his general contracting firm “on the foundations of trust and professionalism.”

He takes pride in his restoration projects

Throughout his career, Donaldson has taken on major projects as a result of natural events that occurred in California. Among them was the devastating 1994 Northridge earthquake that occurred on Jan. 17 in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles.

“Working on these earthquake-damaged buildings was a great learning experience in understanding how to conduct major repairs and maintain the building’s architectural integrity,” reads Donaldson’s company website. At the time, he and his partner took on the project before going their separate ways in 1998.

“John says that he finds great satisfaction in being able to help transform old dated buildings and bringing them new life,” the website states. “He adds value to these projects not only through his construction expertise, but through his ability to work closely with architects and others in conceptualizing the creative aspects of the redevelopment.”

They began dating in 2012 after meeting at a barbecue

White and Donaldson’s romance dates back to 2012 after the TV personality and Santo Pietro split amicably in 2002. White met the real estate developer when a friend brought him to one of her barbecues.

Since then, they’ve made various public appearances together. Donaldson has accompanied White on several red carpets and charity events — some of which include the 2016 Chrysalis Butterfly Ball, the 2017 Brent Shapiro Foundation For Alcohol and Drug Prevention fundraiser and the 2019 annual Race to Erase MS Gala.

During her 2023 conversation with PEOPLE, White said Donaldson is the “male version of me.”

“We really are very similar. We get along so well,” she said. “He’s easy, and he lets me be me, and I let him be him.”

White considered him “family” long before they got married

In addition to showing support for one another at public events, White never shies away from showcasing her love for Donaldson on social media. She often posts sweet tributes on Instagram, uploading images paired with captions dedicated to her partner and two kids.

In December 2018, she shared a photo on Instagram with Donaldson and her two children, captioned, “Happy New Year from Our Family to Yours!”

They announced their wedding in January 2026

On Jan. 21, White announced on Instagram that she and Donaldson had gotten married in a surprise wedding.

“John and I have been in love for more than a decade and a little while back, we wanted to make it official in a private ceremony,” she captioned the post. “We’re excited to share this new joyful chapter in our lives with all of you!”