Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Trump Backers Converge on Vote Centers in Michigan, Arizona
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
November 5, 2020

Share

Dozens of angry supporters of President Donald Trump converged on vote-counting centers in Detroit and Phoenix as the returns went against him Wednesday in the two key states, while thousands of anti-Trump protesters demanding a complete tally of the ballots in the still-undecided election took to the streets in cities across the U.S.

“Stop the count!” the Trump supporters chanted in Detroit. “Stop the steal!” they said in Phoenix.

The protests came as the president insisted without evidence that there were major problems with the voting and the ballot counting, especially with mail-in votes, and as Republicans filed suit in various states over the election.

Wearing Trump gear, the Phoenix protesters filled much of the parking lot at the Maricopa County election center, and members of the crowd chanted, “Fox News sucks!” in anger over the network declaring Joe Biden the winner in Arizona.

Rep. Paul Gosar, an Arizona Republican and staunch Trump supporter, joined the crowd, declaring: “We’re not going to let this election be stolen. Period.”

However, observers from both major political parties were inside the election center as ballots were processed and counted, and the procedure was live-streamed online at all times.

Several sheriff’s deputies blocked the entrance to the building. And the vote-counting went on into the night, Maricopa County Elections Department spokeswoman Megan Gilbertson said.

Two top county officials — one a Democrat, the other a Republican — issued a statement expressing concern about how misinformation had spread about the integrity of the election process.

“Everyone should want all the votes to be counted, whether they were mailed or cast in person,” said the statement signed by Clint Hickman, the GOP chair of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, and Democratic Supervisor Steve Gallardo. “An accurate vote takes time. … This is evidence of democracy, not fraud.”

Seattle Authorities Arrested Seven People on Protest-Related Charges

Meanwhile, from New York City to Seattle, thousands of demonstrators turned out to demand that every vote be tallied.

In Portland, Oregon, which has been a scene of regular protests for months, Gov. Kate Brown called out the National Guard as demonstrators engaged in what authorities said was widespread violence downtown, including smashing windows. Protesters in Portland were demonstrating about a range of issues, including police brutality and the counting of the vote.

“It’s important to trust the process, and the system that has ensured free and fair elections in this country through the decades, even in times of great crisis,” Brown said in a statement. “We are all in this together.”

Richard March came to an anti-Trump demonstration in Portland despite a heart condition that makes him vulnerable to COVID-19.

“To cast doubt on this election has terrible consequences for our democracy,” he said. “I think we are a very polarized society now — and I’m worried about what’s going to come in the next days and weeks and months.”

Seattle authorities arrested seven people on protest-related charges, including one who was taken to a hospital after “experiencing a medical episode,” police said in a statement early Thursday.

Police said it was unclear whether the person’s medical issue was related to the arrest. The person was initially hospitalized in critical condition but later upgraded to serous condition, Harborview Medical Center spokeswoman Susan Gregg said Thursday morning.

The Confrontation in Detroit Started Shortly Before the Associated Press Declared That Biden Had Won Michigan

In New York, hundreds of people paraded past boarded-up luxury stores on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue, and in Chicago, demonstrators marched through downtown and along a street across the river from Trump Tower.

Similar protests — sometimes about the election, sometimes about racial inequality — took place in at least a half-dozen cities, including Los Angeles, Houston, Pittsburgh, Minneapolis and San Diego.

The confrontation in Detroit started shortly before The Associated Press declared that Biden had won Michigan.

Video shot by local media showed angry people gathered outside the TCF Center and inside the lobby, with police officers lined up to keep them from entering the vote-counting area. They chanted, “Stop the count!” and “Stop the vote!”

Earlier, the Republican campaign filed suit in a bid to halt the count, demanding Michigan’s Democratic secretary of state allow in more inspectors.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, insisted both parties and the public had been given access to the tallying, “using a robust system of checks and balances to ensure that all ballots are counted fairly and accurately.”

Michigan has been on edge for months over fears of political violence. Anti-government protesters openly carried guns into the state Capitol during protests over coronavirus restrictions in the spring, and six men were arrested last month on charges of plotting to kidnap Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

On Election Night, scattered protests broke after voting ended, stretching from Washington, D.C., to Seattle, but there was no widespread unrest or significant violence.

The prolonged task of counting this year’s deluge of mail-in votes raised fears that the lack of clarity in the presidential race could spark unrest.

DON'T MISS

Texas Man Charged With Stalking WNBA Star Caitlin Clark

DON'T MISS

Newsom Blocks Early Release for Merced Man Who Murdered Teacher

DON'T MISS

Gov. Newsom Sparks Outrage as Donation Link to LA Fire Relief Connects to Super PAC

DON'T MISS

Rep. Costa Says Immigration Sweeps Are Over, but Border Patrol Targets Fresno

DON'T MISS

Fresno’s Fentanyl ‘King’ Gets 23 Years in Federal Prison

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Leaders Saying About Anti-Deportation Protests?

DON'T MISS

IRS Issues Stimulus Payments Again. Who Is Getting Them?

DON'T MISS

Mike McCarthy Won’t Return as Dallas Cowboys Coach: AP Source

DON'T MISS

As Crazy as It Sounds, Trump’s Approach to Foreign Policy Could Work

DON'T MISS

Fresno State Lands Minnesota Defensive Tackle and De La Salle Linebacker

UP NEXT

Meathead Movers Fill Trucks with Donations for LA Fire Victims. Fresno Can Help

UP NEXT

Google to Track Every Device Starting February 16

UP NEXT

TikTok’s Fate Arrives at Supreme Court in Collision of Free Speech and National Security

UP NEXT

Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Dies in On-Duty Traffic Accident

UP NEXT

Italian Journalist Freed From Detention in Iran, Returns Home

UP NEXT

Washington Post Lays Off 4% of Its Workforce

UP NEXT

Jimmy Carter Will Be Honored in Washington, a City Where He Remained an Outsider

UP NEXT

Even MAGA Needs Immigrants, It Seems

UP NEXT

First US Bird Flu Death Is Announced in Louisiana

UP NEXT

The Jan. 6 Rioters, 4 Years Later

Rep. Costa Says Immigration Sweeps Are Over, but Border Patrol Targets Fresno

1 hour ago

Fresno’s Fentanyl ‘King’ Gets 23 Years in Federal Prison

3 hours ago

What Are Fresno Leaders Saying About Anti-Deportation Protests?

3 hours ago

IRS Issues Stimulus Payments Again. Who Is Getting Them?

4 hours ago

Mike McCarthy Won’t Return as Dallas Cowboys Coach: AP Source

4 hours ago

As Crazy as It Sounds, Trump’s Approach to Foreign Policy Could Work

4 hours ago

Fresno State Lands Minnesota Defensive Tackle and De La Salle Linebacker

5 hours ago

DeSantis Calls Special Session To Implement Trump’s Immigration Policies

5 hours ago

Mayor Jerry Dyer Shares What Fresno Can Expect in 2025

5 hours ago

Veterans Are Bright Spot in Dismal National Homelessness Report. What Can We Learn?

5 hours ago

Texas Man Charged With Stalking WNBA Star Caitlin Clark

Authorities in Indianapolis have charged a 55-year-old Texas man with felony stalking of Indiana Fever star and WNBA Rookie of the Year Cait...

15 minutes ago

15 minutes ago

Texas Man Charged With Stalking WNBA Star Caitlin Clark

2010 Merced Murder Victim Diane Lynn Reid Romero
30 minutes ago

Newsom Blocks Early Release for Merced Man Who Murdered Teacher

Photo of Gov. Gavin Newsom
1 hour ago

Gov. Newsom Sparks Outrage as Donation Link to LA Fire Relief Connects to Super PAC

1 hour ago

Rep. Costa Says Immigration Sweeps Are Over, but Border Patrol Targets Fresno

Fentanyl M30 Pills
3 hours ago

Fresno’s Fentanyl ‘King’ Gets 23 Years in Federal Prison

3 hours ago

What Are Fresno Leaders Saying About Anti-Deportation Protests?

Photo of IRS building
4 hours ago

IRS Issues Stimulus Payments Again. Who Is Getting Them?

Cowboys Coach Mike McCarthy
4 hours ago

Mike McCarthy Won’t Return as Dallas Cowboys Coach: AP Source

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend