Jubilation in the streets; disbelief in Trump camp
Cheering crowds and honking cars filled streets across the U.S. and around the globe, while supporters of President Donald Trump echoed his complaints about vote counts.
As word finally came Saturday after an exhausting and tense week that Joe Biden will become the 46th U.S. president, cities across the nation braced for a darker side: potential violence.
Some supporters of President Donald Trump flocked to state capitols as encouraged by a campaign called “Stop the Steal,” an effort to delegitimize the vote count that was booted from Facebook for spreading misinformation and inciting violence.
“We all know why Joe Biden is rushing to falsely pose as the winner, and why his media allies are trying so hard to help him: They don’t want the truth to be exposed,” Trump said in a statement after the race was called. “The simple fact is this election is far from over.”
Amid a few exchanges of heated words, initial protests were mostly peaceful in the hours after Biden’s victory was announced. But Trump backers remained defiant. Hundreds massed outside the state Capitol in Lansing, Michigan, waving signs saying “It’s not over” and chanting “We won!”
Several dozen Biden supporters stood nearby, urging the group to accept the election results.
Michael Elkins of Westland, dressed in an American flag suit, said he suspected election fraud after the push for absentee voting because of COVID-19 concerns.
“If Joe Biden won legitimately, I’m OK with that,” Elkin said. “Election integrity is a cornerstone of society that is crumbling away.”
After Trump’s yearlong crusade against mail voting, the president’s voters were reluctant to vote that way, while Biden supporters embraced the method because of the coronavirus pandemic. Biden supporters dominated mail voting by a 2-to-1 margin.
Hundreds of protesters gathered at the state Capitol in Salem, Oregon, waving American flags and Trump signs, as well as signs questioning the election results.
Jo Rae Perkins, who ran unsuccessfully as a Republican against Democrat Jeff Merkley for U.S. Senate, spoke to the crowd: “This is an appeal to heaven. We need to pray for Trump, for his family and for his Cabinet.”
The protest drew the attention of the Oregon State Police, as well as counterprotesters. The state police retweeted posts from reporter Sergio Olmos with Oregon Public Broadcasting, showing an officer asking a group of Black Lives Matter supporters to “move up the street to de-escalate,” which the group agreed to do.
Things turned sour later in the evening. There were two separate demonstrations in Salem, Oregon, police said in an email. One began at noon PST at the Capitol, and the other started at 5 p.m. PST as protesters marched to the Capitol. Four people were arrested during the day; two of the arrests included assault charges.
In Sacramento, fights broke out between dozens of supporters of Trump and Biden. Punches were thrown, but there were no reports of serious injuries. In Lansing, about 500 Trump supporters packed the steps of the Michigan Capitol and spilled onto the lawn.
In a few spots, some of Trump’s supporters looked on the bright side. This was not the outcome that Krishnan Seshasayee, an IT architect from Chicago who says he leans Republican, wanted and worked for, but he said he accepted the outcome.
“This election is really not that bad for conservatives,” Seshasayee said. Republicans shrank Nancy Pelosi’s lead in the House of Representatives, and he’s confident they will retain control of the Senate. And, thanks to Trump, he says, there are fewer activist judges on the Supreme Court.
As for claims of voter fraud, Seshasayee added: “When you can’t prove the allegations, you have to trust the process. I will accept whatever is the outcome of the judicial process.”
Hundreds of Trump supporters gathered at the Phoenix state Capitol for a “Stop the Steal” protest shortly after noon. The event was scheduled before news of Biden’s win after three days of protests at the Maricopa County Elections Center.
Outside the Capitol in Albany, New York, Trump supporters hoisted U.S. flags and posters saying “stop the steal.”
At the statehouse in Columbia, South Carolina, protesters marched with signs that read “stop election fraud.”
As Biden supporters flooded the streets in Austin, Texas, the Trump faithful were steadfast. Otilia and Jesse Fraga of Pflugerville, Texas, said they weren’t ready to give up. “I want it to go to the courts. I don’t care who wins as long as it is legitimate,” Otilia Fraga said.
Chris Wodke of Milwaukee said the media had no right to call the race and nobody should be declared president until all the votes are tallied officially and all the challenges are litigated.
“I want to see legal votes counted and state laws followed,” she said. “I realize my side could lose legitimately. If we lose fairly, that’s how it goes.”
But officials across the U.S. had reason to be concerned about violence. Armed protesters – some carrying shotguns, some handguns and others semiautomatic rifles – have congregated throughout the week outside offices where workers were counting ballots.
Some carrying weapons outside polls say their mission was a peaceful one.
“I’m here to protect a peaceful protest,” said Keith Owen, who carried a semiautomatic assault rifle and wore a handgun in a holster strapped to his leg. His vest held extra ammunition. Owen, who described himself as a veteran who served in Afghanistan, was among roughly 100 Trump supporters gathered for a third straight day Friday in front of the Phoenix elections center.
“I will accept whatever is the outcome of the judicial process.” Krishnan Seshasayee Of Chicago
Contributing: Anne Godlasky, Eric Richards, Jessica Guynn USA TODAY; Mark Johnson, Lansing State Journal; Chuck Lindell, Shonda Novak, Austin American-Statesman; Natalie Pate, Statesman Journal (Ore.); Jamie Landers, Audrey Jensen, Madeline Ackley, Dianna M. Náñez, Bree Burkitt, Arizona Republic; Georgea KovanisJC Reindl, Slone Terranella, Detroit Free Press; The Associated Press