Trump vs. Harris: Where they stand on issues that matter to voters

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Abortion

Trump

• During the September debate, Trump falsely said Democrats support abortions in the third trimester and after birth. No state in the country allows termination after birth.
• He refused to commit to vetoing a national abortion ban. When asked directly if he would veto a ban, Trump indicated Congress wouldn’t need to pass one.
• The former president wouldn’t initially say during a town hall whether he supports a federal abortion ban.
• He called the overturning of the landmark abortion rights case Roe v. Wade “a great victory” during a CNN town hall.
• In April 2024, he said on his social media platform Truth Social that it’d be best if states handled abortion the way their constituents want, adding he’s in favor of exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother.
• Also said on Truth Social that he “strongly” supports fertility treatments and that he “has never and will never” advocate for restricting birth control and other contraceptives.

Harris

• Harris said women do not want abortion bans, speaking about women who are miscarrying and denied care because doctors are afraid to go to jail and young teens who are incest victims being forced to give birth.
• She committed to signing a bill to protect the right to abortion across the U.S.
• Harris is aligned with Biden in her view on abortion, going as far as saying last month “everything is at stake” regarding women’s reproductive rights.
• The vice president is in favor of ensuring all American women have access to legal abortions.
• “Every person of whatever gender should understand that, if such a fundamental freedom such as the right to make decisions about your own body can be taken, be aware of what other freedoms may be at stake,” Harris said in a joint MSNBC interview with Hadley Duvall, an abortion rights advocate from Kentucky who was raped by her stepfather as a child.
• Harris falsely wrote on X that Trump would ban abortion nationwide. She then added: “President Joe Biden and I will do everything in our power to stop him and restore women’s reproductive freedom.”
• Harris also visited a Planned Parenthood clinic in Minnesota in March, describing the banning or heavy restriction of abortions as “immoral.”
• “How dare these elected leaders believe they are in a better position to tell women what they need,” Harris said at the time. “We have to be a nation that trusts women.”