In 1976, she married Martin McAleese, an accountant and dentist. He assisted his wife with some of her initiatives as president. They have three children: Emma, born in 1982, who graduated as an engineer from University College Dublin and graduated as a dentist from Trinity College Dublin; and twins born in 1985, Justin, an accountant with a master's degree from University College Dublin, and SaraMai, who obtained a master's degree in biochemistry at the University of Oxford. Ahead of the 2015 marriage equality referendum, Justin McAleese spoke publicly about growing up gay.