Sheryl Lee Ralph planning ‘big party’ for 20th wedding anniversary

Sheryl Lee Ralph and Vincent Hughes are planning a “big party” to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary.

The 67-year-old actress tied the knot with Pennsylvania politician Hughes, also 67, in 2005 after two years of dating. While they are unsure exactly where the celebrations will take place, she has decided that next year’s celebration will not be a “small” affair by any stretch of the imagination.

She told People: “Well, his state is Pennsylvania, his city is Philadelphia. Maybe [we’ll celebrate] in the courtyard of city hall or on the stairs of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. That would be wonderful. Why go small? Big party!”

Despite being married for almost two decades, the pair don’t live under the same roof because of work commitments, but neither Sheryl - who spends a lot of time in California shooting Abbott Elementary - nor Vincent could see why the revelation was such a big deal.

Asked why he thought the news caused a stir, Hughes told Entertainment Tonight: “I don’t know why, we’ve been commuting ever since the beginning and it has worked for us, so it’s cool!”

Ralph previously admitted that because of logistics regarding both of their careers, they actually end up seeing each other just once a fortnight, but insisted that because they have been together for so long now, the set-up has “worked” for them despite causing controversy amongst fans.

She said: “Vincent and I have been married going on 19 years. We’ve been together 21 years. Abbott [ Elementary] is shot in Los Angeles. My husband, as a senator, is always in his Capitol, so I don’t know what magic people think we’re gonna do. We see each other on the average of every two weeks. And everybody who questions that I say, guess what? We’re still married. It works for us and we’re happy, so... .”

The traditional 20th wedding anniversary gift is china, “which represents the beauty and delicate nature of the relationship”.

Ralph has been nominated for an Emmy Award in the category of Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role as Barbara Howard in Abbott Elementary. This marks her third consecutive nomination for the role, having previously won the award in 2022, the year of her first nomination.

Ralph and fellow Emmy winner Tony Hale announced the nominations on Wednesday morning. She was informed of her own nomination by Television Academy Chair Cris Abrego during the broadcast, to which she cheered and stated, ‘It never gets old, it never gets old. Yes!”