US Vice President and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris supported abortion rights at a rally in Houston, Texas on Friday, just 11 days before the closely contested presidential election on November 5th.

The vice president addressed more than 20,000 supporters, telling them that former Republican President Donald Trump reversed decades of progress when he appointed Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe v. Wade fell and triggered a reproductive health crisis. Trump is Harris’ rival in the race for the White House in 2024.

Harris warns against Trump’s nationwide abortion ban

“If you’re watching from another state and think you’re protected from Trump’s abortion bans because you live in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada, New York, California or another state where voters or lawmakers have protected reproductive freedom, then “Please know: No one is protected,” she said.

“Because a nationwide ban by Donald Trump will ban abortion in every single state.”

In 2021, conservative-leaning Texas became the first state to introduce an almost complete ban on abortion. Trump has promised to veto a nationwide abortion ban if he wins a second term, but his evangelical supporters are pushing for stronger restrictions on the practice.

Texas is not one of the few swing states in the USA that, like Pennsylvania or Wisconsin, are expected to decide the outcome of the 2024 US election. With his visit to Texas, Harris is trying to warn voters in swing states about the impact of the abortion ban and the potential impact on women if Trump returns to the White House.

Harris listed the downstream effects of abortion bans on women who now have “fewer options” and said that “fewer medical students are choosing to specialize in women’s health.”

Beyonce’s support

Pop superstar Beyonce supported the US Vice President at the rally in her first political appearance of this election cycle.

“It’s time for America to sing a new song,” Beyoncé told roaring fans in Houston, her hometown. The singer didn’t play any of her hits.

“I’m not here as a celebrity. I’m not here as a politician. I’m here as a mother,” Beyoncé said. She spoke about reproductive rights, adding that her children would “see the sacrifices that were made so that we could bear witness to the strength of a woman… and have a new idea of ​​what leadership is.”

Beyonce – one of the most popular pop artists of her generation – has an audience made up largely of women.

Harris and Trump are neck and neck in national polls and in key battleground states.

However, the vice president has gained an advantage over the former president when it comes to female voters. In a Reuters/Ipsos poll released in late August, Harris led Trump among female voters 49% to 36%, or 13 percentage points.

mk/wd (AP, AFP, Reuters)