As abortion remains a critical concern for voters across the country, the DNC seized this opportunity to prove that abortion rights are a cornerstone of Kamala Harris’s platform. “It was abortion that made a huge difference in race after race [in 2022],” noted Celinda Lake, president of Lake Research Partners, a top Democratic polling firm. “In well over half the races, it was the issue of abortion that increased turnout of Democrats and younger voters.” Harris’s campaign has embraced this issue, using the DNC to reaffirm her commitment to restoring and expanding reproductive healthcare access throughout the country.
On the first day of the convention, three reproductive justice activists took the stage to share their personal stories, illustrating the devastating impact of restrictive abortion bans. Kaitlyn Joshua of Baton Rouge recounted how she was refused treatment for her miscarriage because doctors feared the criminal consequences of Louisiana’s strict abortion ban. “I was in pain, bleeding so much my husband feared for my life,” Joshua said during her emotional testimony. “No woman should experience what I endured, but too many have.” Her husband added, “I am here tonight because the fight for reproductive rights isn’t just a woman’s fight. This is about fighting for our families, and as Kamala Harris says, ‘Our future.’”
Hadley Duvall, a Kentucky native, shared her own harrowing experience to emphasize the necessity of reproductive healthcare. “I was raped by my stepfather after years of sexual abuse. At age 12, I took my first pregnancy test and it was positive,” said Duvall. “That was the first time I was ever told, ‘You have options.’ I can’t imagine not having a choice, but today that’s the reality for many women and girls across the country because of Donald Trump’s abortion bans.”
As Kamala Harris accepted the nomination for President, she didn’t mince words about the country’s future under Trump and his allies. She laid bare their agenda: limiting access to birth control, banning medication abortion, enacting a nationwide abortion ban, and forcing states to report on women’s miscarriages and abortions. “Simply put,” she said, “they are out of their minds.” Her promise as President was clear and unwavering — to sign into law a bill that would restore reproductive freedom across the nation. With abortion rights as a cornerstone of her platform, Kamala Harris made it clear that under her leadership, the battle for reproductive freedom would be relentless, ensuring that every woman has the right to choose and control her own future.
Mini Timmaraju, president of Reproductive Freedom for All, emphasized this commitment, declaring, “Kamala Harris has her own project for 2025: restoring reproductive freedom.”