On Friday, the US election deviates from the swing state circuit and heads to Texas, which is consistently Republican. Donald Trump meets with the nation’s largest podcaster, and Kamala Harris rallies alongside musical sensation Beyonce.
Harris is spending nearly every minute of his time in the seven battleground states that are expected to influence the final vote, so Texas is an unusual stop just a few days before the November 5 election.
However, the Democratic team is taking a chance that their all-star performance, which also includes country music icon Willie Nelson, would energise the campaign before the last week and provide Harris with a massive platform to draw attention to Republican abortion restrictions.
Beyonce’s backing for Harris comes on top of an endorsement from Taylor Swift and campaign appearances from artists including Lizzo, Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen, Eminem and Usher.
The “Crazy in Love” singer will appear alongside Harris in Houston, while Trump will be in Austin, taping an interview with Joe Rogan, who hosts the United States’ most popular podcast.
Polls indicate that the contest is too close to call. Trump and Harris were tied with 48 percent of the vote, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll released Friday.
Harris is counting on the abortion debate to help propel her to the top.Following a Supreme Court decision in 2022 that eliminated national protection of abortion, the first presidential election will take place in November.
Additionally, throughout her campaign, Harris has connected Trump—who claimed the abortion decision after reforming the court—to startling accounts of women who have been denied access to essential reproductive health care.Texas, which is headed by Republicans, now forbids abortions in all but certain circumstances.
