Donald Trump has told an all-female audience at an election campaign event he is “the father of IVF”, remarks his opponent Kamala Harris called “quite bizarre”.

With less than three weeks until the US presidential election, he said in a pre-recorded town hall event in the battleground state of Georgia that the Republicans “really are the party for IVF”.

In his interview with Fox News’s Harris Faulkner, to be aired later on Wednesday, he said: “We want fertilisation, and it’s all the way, and the Democrats tried to attack us on it, and we’re out there on IVF, even more than them. So, we’re totally in favour.”

Responding to the former president’s claim, Ms Harris, his Democrat rival for the White House, asked on X: “What is he talking about?

“His abortion bans have already jeopardised access to it [IVF] in states across the country – and his own platform could end IVF altogether.”

Leaving a rally in Detroit, she told reporters the notion was “quite bizarre”.

She said her opponent should take responsibility for the fact that couples “praying and hoping” to start a family “have been so disappointed and harmed by the fact that IVF treatments have now been put at risk.”

She was referring to February’s ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court that the destruction of frozen embryos amounted to murder, classifying them as children.

The Republican-controlled state legislature later passed a law that sought to protect IVF patients and providers from liability.

Mr Trump and Republican congressional leaders have backed IVF following the ruling, which state Republicans and Democrats joined together to reverse.

Mr Trump revealed that after ruling, he asked the US Senator for Alabama, Katie Britt to explain IVF to him during a phone conversation said he understood it “within about two minutes”, telling Ms Britt “we’re totally in favour of IVF”.

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Mr Trump said in an interview with NBC News in August that if he is elected, his administration would not only protect access to the treatment but would also have either the government or insurance companies cover the cost.

He said it would be “free” if he was re-elected.

Asked about the row, Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said “the father of IVF” comment was “a joke”.

The former president was “enthusiastically answering a question about IVF as he strongly supports widespread access to fertility treatments for women and families”, she said.

Ms Harris continues to lead Mr Trump in nationwide polls, but questions remain over whether this will transfer into an election win.

Due to the nature of the US election, much of it relies on a few million voters in several key swing states, including Georgia and the outcome remains a virtual coin toss.

Elon Musk has donated $75m (£58m) to a campaign group he set up to support Donald Trump’s presidential bid.

The donation to America PAC, which was made in several payments over the summer, has been revealed in new campaign finance disclosures.

Around $72m (£56m) of the $75m (£58m) has already been spent by the group on canvassing efforts to encourage people to vote.

US election latest: Trump makes bizarre IVF claim

America PAC has been hit by problems with hiring campaigners in recent months, having fired two major contractors since July who were tasked with knocking on front doors.

Following the disclosure, Musk wrote on social media that America PAC was “just aiming for common sense, centrist values”.

The billionaire previously supported the Democrats but has become a vocal backer of Mr Trump in recent months.

He has vowed to help with campaign efforts and joined the Republican candidate on stage at a campaign rally earlier this month in Pennsylvania.

At the event, Musk – who runs Tesla and SpaceX – jumped around on the stage and described next month’s presidential election as a “must-win situation” during brief remarks to the crowd.

Mr Trump has welcomed Musk’s support and described him as someone who is “as smart as you get”.

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There has been intense speculation over Musk’s contributions to the Trump campaign, after the Republican presidential candidate claimed in July that Musk gave him “$45m a month”.

The billionaire disputed the figure and later tweeted his donations were “at a much lower level”.

America PAC is one of several major political action committees in the US.

Such groups can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money in support of political candidates, on the condition that they do not co-ordinate with their campaigns or give money to them.

America PAC has declined to comment on the donations.

Musk is currently the world’s richest man, with an estimated net worth of $248bn (£191bn), according to Forbes.

Sean “Diddy” Combs has been accused of raping a woman as alleged payback for her saying she believed he was involved in the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur, a new lawsuit shows.

The court document, filed in California, is the latest civil case to be filed against Combs, who is currently behind held in New York as he awaits a criminal trial on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering.

Warning: This story contains details readers may find distressing

In the lawsuit, the woman claims the hip-hop mogul raped her using a remote control – and that associates witnessed and also took part in sexual abuse. She also alleges he threatened to give her “a Glasgow smile” – to cut her face with a knife – and threatened he could harm her and her family if she spoke out.

She is suing Combs, along with four other men and two women, over allegations of sexual assault, battery, rape, sexual abuse, false imprisonment and kidnapping, and has called for a trial by jury.

Combs, known as P Diddy, has not yet responded to this lawsuit, but has denied all claims of sexual assault made against him.

He has also previously denied any involvement in the murder of Shakur, who was killed in a drive-by shooting in Las Vegas in 1996.

The woman claims she first met one of Combs’ friends in a bar in February 2018. In the lawsuit, she says the man made a video call to Combs and showed her – but she told him she “was not impressed” as she believed “he had something to do with the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur”.

She heard Combs remark that she would “pay” for her statement and dismissal of him, the court documents say.

The woman says she was at the friend’s home in Orinda, California, the following month, when the rapper arrived unannounced.

He told her again she would “pay”, the lawsuit claims, and approached her with a knife. He held it to the right side of her face “and threatened to give her a ‘Glasgow smile’ in retaliation for her previous statements on the video call”, the document says.

The woman alleges her clothes were removed and that Combs covered her in a substance she realised was an oil or lubricant, before picking up a television remote and “violently” raping her with it.

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Combs is accused of telling the woman “her life was in his hands and that if he wanted he could ‘take her’ and she would never be seen again”, and also that he “owned her now”.

She was then raped by Combs and others “until eventually she had no control over her body nor could she move her body”, the lawsuit alleges. The rapper recorded some of this, she claims.

The woman says she eventually managed to run for help and that Combs offered her money to say she was a sex worker and that they had had consensual sex.

She says she told a local sheriff about her ordeal, but her complaint was “ignored”.

Her claim in California comes a day after six lawsuits were filed against Combs in New York, with more expected in the coming weeks.

In a statement, Combs’ representatives said the rapper and his legal team “have full confidence in the facts, their legal defences, and the integrity of the judicial process”.

They added: “In court, the truth will prevail: that Mr Combs has never sexually assaulted anyone – adult or minor, man or woman.”

When planned lawsuits were announced on 1 October, one of his lawyers said he could not “address every meritless allegation in what has become a reckless media circus”.

Combs, 54, was once one of the most influential producers in hip-hop, and also known as a rapper in his own right, with hits including Bad Boy For Life and I’ll Be Missing You.

After being arrested in September, he pleaded not guilty to three felony charges accusing him of using his business empire, including record label Bad Boy Entertainment, to transport male and female sex workers across state lines to take part in recorded sexual performances called “freak offs”.

His criminal trial has been set for May 2025.

The killing of Tupac remained unsolved for more than two decades, but the case was reinvestigated in recent years.

In September 2023, former gang member Duane “Keffe D” Davis was charged with murder. His trial is due to take place in March 2025.