Melania Trump, the former first lady of the United States, has appeared to reveal her support for abortion rights just a month before voters head to the polls to decide whether her husband Donald Trump will return to the White House.
“Individual freedom is a fundamental principle that I safeguard,” she said in a video posted on the social media platform X promoting her memoir.
“Without a doubt, there is no room for compromise when it comes to this essential right that all women possess from birth.
“What does my body, my choice really mean?”
The phrase “my body, my choice” is used by advocates to defend the right to abortion, which was struck down in the US by a Supreme Court decision in 2022.
Former president Trump had previously taken credit for appointing three justices who helped to
The subject has been a central issue in US politics for decades, with the Democratic Party generally in favour of legalising the procedure, while Republicans oppose it.
The overturning of Roe v Wade resulted in bans being implemented in dozens of states despite surveys indicating that the majority of US citizens support a limited right to the procedure.
The issue could swing voters towards Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris but Trump has appeared to shift his position during his campaign, distancing himself from radical activists advocating a ban on abortion even in extreme cases of rape and incest.
Trump’s ambiguity on the topic may have alienated some of his anti-abortion supporters, who are sure to be further incensed by his wife’s supposed intervention.
Melania’s memoir
Melania Trump is due to release her book in the coming days.
An excerpt obtained by The Guardian suggests she intends to further signal her support for abortion rights.
“Why should anyone other than the woman herself have the power to determine what she does with her own body?” Melania Trump writes.
“Restricting a woman’s right to choose whether to terminate an unwanted pregnancy is the same as denying her control over her own body. I have carried this belief with me throughout my entire adult life,” she was reported as writing in the memoir.
Trump had previously signalled support for a national ban beyond 15 weeks of pregnancy but in April said political considerations were paramount in the first presidential election since the US Supreme Court overturned the Roe vs Wade decision, ending a nearly 50-year federal right to the procedure.
Democrats see abortion rights as a popular issue for Harris to use against Trump.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted from 21-28 August found a majority of voters, including 34 per cent of Republicans, want the next president to protect or increase abortion access.
