Harris to defend Roe in anniversary speech, possibly from inside DeSantis country
Katherine Doyle
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Vice President Kamala Harris is planning a speech on abortion rights for the 50th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, returning to a message that has animated Democratic voters as the race for 2024 comes into view.
Harris rallied voters on abortion issues in the lead-up to the midterms after the Supreme Court overturned Roe in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case. Surveys showed the blowback helped propel Democratic voters to the polls.
Now, as Democrats await a decision by President Joe Biden over his expected reelection campaign, Harris is set to elevate the issue once again as the shuffle toward an expected bid for another term gets underway.
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Harris’s office is planning for the vice president to deliver remarks on abortion on Sunday to mark half a century since the Supreme Court ruled on Roe in a decision that legalized abortions nationwide, the White House confirmed to the Washington Examiner.
Aides told Politico that Florida is a top choice for the speech.
Led by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), Florida saw a historic Republican swing in the midterm elections as Democratic strongholds tilted against Biden’s party, leading some to question the Democratic Party’s future inside the state. DeSantis is already a hotly tipped future presidential contender, perhaps as early as 2024.
Former President Donald Trump, who appointed three of the justices who voted to overturn Roe and is running to return to office, also lives in Florida.
But Florida Democrats say elevating the fight for abortion rights inside the state could help revive their party as it navigates its future after a bruising election cycle.
“Democrats at the state and local level have been informing their constituents that Florida has been written off. If, in fact, [Harris’s] speech is to be delivered in Florida, she will bring a whole new dynamic to the Florida Democratic Party,” political consultant Sasha Tirador, a Democrat, told the Washington Examiner.
The party is set to choose a new leader after Manny Diaz, the Florida Democratic Party’s chairman, resigned following devastating losses for Florida Democrats in typically blue strongholds.
“A female vice president speaking of a woman’s right to choose could very well be a recipe for a female to lead the party in Florida,” Tirador added.
The speech could also offer a preview of the White House’s offensive strategy heading into 2024.
DeSantis has sparred openly with prominent Democrats, including Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), who has been tipped as a possible future presidential contender if Biden chooses not to run.
And ahead of the midterm elections, the governor squared off against Biden by taking aim at Harris, whom he called an “insurance” policy for the president against being removed from office.
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By taking a message that has yielded results for Democrats to DeSantis’s home state, Harris could be laying the groundwork for a fight over Florida voters in the next presidential race.