Trump dials up early claims of ‘rigged’ vote, JLo stands up for women, Latinos and Harris

Phoenix, Arizona: Puerto Rican-American pop star Jennifer Lopez branded Donald Trump the biggest domestic adversary the US has ever faced in a fiery speech endorsing Kamala Harris targeted at women, Latinos and their allies in the final days of the election.

Lopez’s appearance at a Harris rally in Las Vegas came as the Democrats capitalised on controversial incidents this week in which a guest speaker at a Trump rally called the US territory of Puerto Rico a “floating island of garbage”, and Trump vowed he would protect American women “whether the women like it or not”.

Jennifer Lopez speaks during the Kamala Harris rally in Nevada. Credit: AP

Although nearly a week old, the comedian’s “joke” about Puerto Rico, while warming up Trump’s audience at Madison Square Garden, has proven potent as the campaign nears its end and both leaders headed west for a final blitz of battleground states with a sizeable Latino population.

“It wasn’t just Puerto Ricans who were offended that day. It was every Latino in this country, it was humanity, and anyone of decent character,” Lopez said. “At Madison Square Garden, he [Trump] reminded us of who he really is and how he really feels.”

Women and Latinos had the power to decide the election, Lopez said. “We should be emotional. We should be upset. We should be scared and outraged … I am Puerto Rican, I was born here, and yes, we are Americans. This is our country too and we must exercise our right to vote. Let’s get loud.”

The intervention from one of the country’s most prominent Puerto Rican celebrities came as Donald Trump’s vow to protect women “whether the women like it or not” sparked a fresh battle over reproductive rights. Trump told a rally in Michigan his advisers warned him not to portray himself as a protector of women, as it was “inappropriate”.

“Well, I’m going to do it whether the women like it or not,” Trump said. “I’m going to protect them from migrants coming in, I’m going to protect them from foreign countries that want to hit us with missiles.” He added he would also protect children, men and “everybody”.

Harris called the comments offensive and said they were indicative of Trump’s lack of respect for women and evidence that he would further erode reproductive freedom, which is a major issue in the campaign after Trump-appointed Supreme Court judges overturned the 1973 Roe v Wade ruling that gave women the constitutional right to an abortion.

“He does not believe women should have the agency and authority to make decisions about their own bodies,” Harris said at a rally in Phoenix, Arizona on Thursday (Friday AEDT). “He simply does not respect the freedom of women or the intelligence of women to know what’s in their own best interest and make decisions accordingly.”

Harris also made a pointed warning on immigration, saying Trump would reinstate a controversial policy of separating children and parents at the border, a so-called “zero tolerance” approach that Biden quickly rolled back once elected. “You can be sure [Trump] will bring back family separation policies, only on a much greater scale than last time,” Harris said.

Kamala Harris at the Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre in Phoenix on Thursday.Credit: AP

Meanwhile, the Trump campaign highlighted comments by billionaire businessman and Harris campaigner Mark Cuban, who said of Trump: “You never see him around strong, intelligent women … they’re intimidating to him.” Trump’s campaign said this implied all women supporting Trump were weak and dumb.

The furore over gender-related language has intensified in the final days of the campaign amid a clear, persistent gender gap in the polls, with Harris enjoying a healthy lead among women in key swing states, and Trump a lead among men.

On the sidelines of Harris’ rally in Phoenix, 32-year-old Alyssa Stills said she previously voted for Trump, but now supported Harris – and left the Republican Party to register as an independent – because of the abortion issue.

“Roe being overturned was such a shock,” she said. “It’s real, it’s happening, it’s affecting people, women are dying.”

“I’m going to [protect them] whether the women like it or not”: Donald Trump arrives at a campaign rally in Albuquerque, New Mexico.Credit: AP

As both campaigns went west for a final blitz, Trump also made a stop in the reliably Democratic state of New Mexico, where he falsely claimed he almost won the state in 2016 and 2020 (he lost by margins of greater than 8 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively).

“They all said, don’t come [to New Mexico] ... I said, ‘Look, your votes are rigged’,” Trump said. “We almost won it twice and let me tell you, I believe we won it twice, if you want to know the truth.”

That followed an outburst on Trump’s Truth Social website in which the former president claimed the Democrats had been caught “CHEATING BIG” in Pennsylvania. “CHECK OUT KAMALA’S NEW SLEAZEBAG LAWYER,” he wrote in all caps. “Who would have ever thought that our Country is so CORRUPT?”

The post related to the Trump campaign’s court win securing the extension of early voting in suburban Philadelphia, due to complaints that voters were being turned away when the county office closed at 5pm.

Trump and running mate J.D. Vance branded it “voter fraud”, a claim Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said was “bullshit”.

“Everybody needs to take a deep breath and understand that it is our fellow Pennsylvanians who are running these elections,” Shapiro told Fox News. “We will again have a free and fair, safe and secure election.”

Trump’s outbursts about fraud and rigged votes will reinforce the assumption he is preparing to deny and contest the election result if he loses on Tuesday night (Wednesday AEDT), or prematurely declare victory.

Separately, Vance waded into LGBTQ issues in an interview with popular podcaster Joe Rogan. He suggested students might “become trans” to gain access to Ivy League universities such as Yale or Harvard through DEI (diversity, equity and conclusion) programs.

Vance also told Rogan about a friend he described as a “gay Reagan Democrat” who did not like the way modern Democrats discussed LGTBQ issues. “I wouldn’t be surprised if me and Trump won the normal gay guy vote because they just want to be left the hell alone,” he said.

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