Vice President Kamala Harris is heading to Arizona, where a recent court decision upholding a 160-year-old abortion ban has reignited a contentious issue in one of the most fiercely contested states for the 2024 elections.
Arizona’s conservative Supreme Court’s ruling has sent shockwaves through the state, which is narrowly divided and could sway the outcome of the presidential race and control of the Senate.
Political strategists from both parties believe that the ban, which effectively outlaws nearly all abortions, will push even moderate Republicans toward the Democrats while also energizing young voters and people of color.
VP Kamala Harris (Credits: Michigan Advance)
President Joe Biden has tasked Harris, a former prosecutor and senator, with leading the administration’s response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade, the landmark abortion rights case, and with rallying core liberal voters who are undecided about a second term for Biden.
In 2020, Biden won Arizona by fewer than 11,000 votes out of 3.3 million ballots cast, marking the narrowest victory for any state. Democrats see the restrictions on reproductive rights as a potential factor in securing another victory in Arizona. In this state, voters have been increasingly concerned about cost-of-living issues and immigration.
“We must all understand who is to blame: It is the former president, Donald Trump,” Harris will say in Tucson, addressing reproductive health patients and providers, according to excerpts from a campaign official.
“Here’s what a second Trump term looks like: more bans, more suffering, less freedom. But we are not going to let that happen.” Last month, Harris visited Phoenix as part of her “Fight for Reproductive Freedoms” tour, which has taken her to 20 states and included a visit to a health clinic in Minnesota that offers abortion services.
Kamala Harris (Credits: Glamour)
Trump, set to face Biden again in November’s election, has distanced himself from the Arizona ruling. On Wednesday, he criticized the court for reviving a near-total abortion ban, even as he defended the Supreme Court’s decision to allow states to restrict abortion.
“President Trump could not have been more clear. These are decisions for people of each state to make,” said Karoline Leavitt, a Trump campaign spokesperson.
The Biden campaign has aired an advertisement in Arizona featuring a Texas woman describing her near-death experience after being denied an abortion following a miscarriage. The ad concludes with the words “Donald Trump did this” flashing across the screen.
When asked at the White House about his message to the people of Arizona, Biden simply replied, “Elect me.” While Biden campaigned on legalizing abortion, Democrats did not pass such legislation during their slim majority in Congress from 2021 to 2023.
