Washington: Donald Trump has sought to close the gender gap with Kamala Harris by fielding questions at an all-female town hall where he declared he is “the father of IVF” and acknowledged some US abortion bans were “too tough”.
With less than three weeks until the election, Trump addressed an audience of women at the Fox News event, in which he also vowed to ban transgender athletes playing women’s sports. He said he would use presidential power to scrap sanctuary cities, where local authorities protect undocumented immigrants under law.
Republican presidential nominee former president Donald Trump speaks during an Univision town hall, in Doral, Florida. At a similar event in georgia he claimed to be the father of IVF.Credit: AP
The comments come as the gender gap in voters’ intentions between Trump and Harris becomes one of the most defining features of the 2024 contest, with Trump struggling to win support from women, while Harris is facing similar challenges with men.
Part of the problem for Trump has been his role in gutting reproductive rights in the US, where about 20 states now have abortion restrictions in some form after conservative judges on the Supreme Court – three of whom he appointed – overturned federal protections.
However, speaking to a studio audience in Georgia, Trump suggested that some states with strict abortion bans would undo them because “they’re too tough, too tough”.
“And those are going to be redone because already there’s a movement in those states,” he said. “Like Ronald Reagan, I believe in the exceptions for rape, incest, life of the mother.”
The Republican candidate also took on the issue of IVF, which is another area Democrats have used to galvanise their base.
It became another flashpoint this year after an Alabama court ruled that frozen embryos are humans. This led to IVF clinics in the state pausing services for fear of being sued – something that left many couples wanting to have children deeply upset.
Asked by a participant about his stance on IVF, Trump explained that he received a call from Alabama Republican senator Katie Britt earlier this year – whom he called “a fantastically attractive person” – letting him know women in her state were angered by the ruling.
