US President Joe Biden vowed on Tuesday to make legislation enshrining nationwide abortion rights his top priority if Democrats win their uphill battle for Congress in the upcoming midterm elections.

Biden’s speech marked a newly intensified push from the White House to bolster the party ahead of Nov. 8, when Democrats hope to defy historical trends by retaining their razor-thin control of Congress.

Midterm voting typically punishes the party in the White House, and this year Democrats face discontent over inflation, an unpopular president and fierce culture wars over schools, gender issues and abortion.

But Biden sees abortion as a potential game changer as anger simmers over the Supreme Court’s shock decision Roe v. Wade, the ruling half a century ago that enshrined access to abortion nationwide.

“Women across the country, starting in my house, have lost a fundamental right,” Biden said in a speech in Washington.

Citing the “chaos and heartache” for women seeking abortion, Biden said the Supreme Court ruling has now enacted abortion bans by Republicans in 16 states, home to 26.5 million women.

And he described the election as preparation for a momentous struggle next year in the new Congress.

If Republicans win, any attempt to pass a national abortion ban will be stopped at his desk, Biden said. “I will veto it.”

If Democrats stand by it, the priority would be a national abortion rights bill that would effectively overturn the Supreme Court ruling.

“The first bill I will present to Congress will be Roe v. Codify Wade,” Biden said, calling it a “promise.”

“I will sign it in January, 50 years after Roe was first made law in the country.”

The White House declined to say how Biden envisions details of the law and whether he would support any abortion restrictions.

“It should be something that is decided between a woman and her doctor, her family – not between politicians,” said spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre.

The passion that swirls around abortion on the political stage is unquestionable.

Roe v. Wade made the process legal everywhere, while the Supreme Court decision returned power entirely to state governments, prompting Republican leaders across the country to swiftly impose restrictions or bans, in line with years of campaigning for “right.” on life”. .

The problem is strong, but there is no guarantee that it will move the needle in three weeks.

Democratic officials, including Biden, have repeatedly raised the possibility of a female-led electoral insurgency.

“The court and the extreme Republicans who have spent decades trying to overthrow Roe will soon find out,” Biden said. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”

He pointed to a surprisingly strong rejection by Kansas voters in August of a plan to remove abortion rights from the state’s constitution.

“Come on this November, we’ll see what’s happening across America,” Biden said.

Polls consistently show that a majority of Americans believe abortion should be legal. While most agree there should be some restrictions, only 13 percent support outright bans, according to Gallup.

The bad news for Democrats, however, is that polls show abortion is far down the list of concerns motivating most voters in the turmoil of post-pandemic US life.

A New York Times/Siena poll conducted this week showed that 26 percent of likely voters named the economy as the top issue and 18 percent listed inflation, which is at its highest rate in four decades.

Abortion scored a low five percent of likely voters.

Of concern to Democrats, the poll also found a startling shift in independent female voters.

In September, this group supported the Democrats over the Republicans by 14 points. The latest poll shows them 18 points of support for Republicans.