ST PAUL, Minnesota – United States Vice-President Kamala Harris on March 14 toured a health clinic that offers abortion services while she was in Minnesota, spotlighting growing restrictions on women’s rights that Democrats believe will animate voters in November.

The visit, believed to be the first of a sitting president or vice-president to such a clinic, comes as US President Joe Biden highlights abortion rights as a key issue ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Ms Harris arrived for a tour at Planned Parenthood’s St Paul Health Centre – Vandalia facility as some two dozen anti-abortion protesters stood in the street outside holding signs that read, among other statements: “Abortion is not healthcare.”

After completing a tour that was closed to the press, Ms Harris said women in the country are undergoing “silent suffering” because of attacks on their health.

The clinic in Minnesota’s capital provides a range of care, including birth control and preventive wellness services.

“Right now, in our country, we are facing a very serious health crisis, and the crisis is affecting many, many people in our country,” Ms Harris told reporters.

“I’m here at this healthcare clinic to uplift the work that is happening in Minnesota as an example of what true leadership looks like.”

Democrats think personal freedoms could be a key issue for women, independents and other key voters after the US Supreme Court overturned Roe versus Wade abortion rights in 2022.

Ms Harris has held more than 80 public meetings on the topic since then.

“Today, Kamala Harris should answer if there is any abortion restriction the Biden-Harris administration supports. Voters deserve to know,” a Republican National Committee spokeswoman said following the Vice-President’s visit.

In his State of the Union address last week, Mr Biden pledged to make the right to an abortion the law of the land if re-elected.

Mr Biden and Ms Harris have both stepped up campaign travel since former president Donald Trump – whose appointment of three conservative judges to the nation’s highest court preceded the abortion decision – dominated the Republican Party’s primary races.

In 2023, Minnesota signed a statute protecting the right to abortion in state law. The Biden administration has warned that a federal law restricting abortions or related medication could undermine that statute.

Ms Sarah Traxler, a chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood in the region, said Ms Harris’ visit was a “historic moment”.

Ms Traxler said Minnesota had seen a sharp increase in abortions since Roe versus Wade was overturned, and that many of the women were coming from other states that have restricted access to the procedures. The forced journey was putting some of her patients’ lives at risk, she said.

The Midwest is home to some of the states expected to be the most heavily contested in November, especially Wisconsin and Michigan.

While nearby Minnesota favours Democrats, it could also be in play, and a protest vote against Mr Biden captured 19 per cent of the primary vote there earlier in March.

Democrats worry some of those so-called “uncommitted” voters may sit out November’s election. REUTERS