Abortion in focus as Harris, Beyonce and Trump campaign in Texas

Oct 25 (Reuters) - Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are taking a detour from barnstorming the battleground states that will decide November's election with Friday stops in Texas, a conservative state that was the first to implement a near-total abortion ban.

Texas hasn't backed a Democratic president since 1976, and Republican Trump is almost certain to win the state's 40 electoral college votes.

But Democrats are betting it will provide a powerful backdrop for Vice President Harris to talk about abortion rights in the final days before the Nov. 5 election.

Harris will speak about the danger former President Trump and Republicans could present to abortion rights across the country if he's elected, a campaign source said, and be joined by women who have suffered after Texas' anti-abortion regulations were passed and their family members.

Superstar singer Beyonce is expected to join Harris at her Houston stop and perform, two sources told Reuters. Harris has made Beyonce's song "Freedom" her campaign anthem.

Texas implemented a first-of-its kind law in September 2021 that banned abortion after six weeks and allowed anyone to sue abortion patients in violation and those who assisted them.

The U.S. Supreme Court, with a conservative majority formed by Trump's judicial appointments, allowed the law to stand, and then gutted federal abortion rights by overturning Roe v. Wade in June 2022.

Trump was also planning to campaign in Texas on Friday, making a stop in Austin to record an episode of "The Joe Rogan Experience," a popular podcaster ...
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