Tens of thousands of supporters of United States President Donald Trump on Saturday marched through Washington DC, echoing his unsubstantiated claims of election fraud as he pushes ahead with a flurry of legal moves to overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s victory, Reuters reported.

A week after his Democratic rival clinched the election, Trump has refused to concede to Biden and his administration has rejected any appearance of assisting with the transfer of power. Instead, he continues to claim, without evidence, that there has been a multi-state conspiracy by Democrats to rig the vote tally. Although counting of votes in the United States is still underway, Biden holds a sizeable lead and there has been no indication of improperly counted votes so far that would shift the outcome.

Flag-carrying Trump supporters, however, were out in force on Saturday to complain of alleged electoral fraud.

“Stop the steal!” and “We are the champions!”, they shouted as they marched from Freedom Plaza near the White House to the US Supreme Court building on Capitol Hill. At one point, supporters swarmed Trump’s motorcade as he drove past on his way to his golf course.

The demonstrations were organised under different names, including Million MAGA March – using the acronym for Trump’s Make America Great Again slogan – as well as the March for Trump, and Stop the Steal DC, according to BBC.

Supporters of Trump march in Washington on Saturday. (Credit: Reuters)

Members of the far-right Proud Boys clad in black with some wearing helmets and ballistic vests, were among the marchers, while conspiracy theorist Alex Jones addressed the crowd.

The crowd sang the national anthem, sporadically erupting in cheers for the president. A large number of protesters had travelled across the country – from Los Angeles and Seattle – to show their support for Trump. One group, with the banner “Korean Americans Support 2020 President Trump”, told The Guardian they came in from South Korea for the election and had showed up to support Trump again on Saturday.

By evening, the protest turned violent as skirmishes broke out among Trump supporters and counter-protesters critical of the administration, including members of the loose movement known as antifa.

Near the Supreme Court, some counter-protesters carried black umbrellas and makeshift shields, while others formed a line of bicycles to prevent pro-Trump protesters from approaching their group. They called Trump supporters “Nazis”.

In one instance, several counter-protesters near Union Station attacked a Trump supporter, who fell to the ground and received medical care after suffering a cut to the head. The city’s police department had made 10 arrests by mid-afternoon, a Washington police spokesperson told Reuters, including four for firearms violations, two for assault and one for assaulting an officer.

Supporters of Donald Trump clash with counter-protesters in Washington on November 14. (Credit: Jim Urquhart/ Reuters)

Videos on social media showed fistfights breaking out, the police trying to keep the groups apart by forming barricades with their bikes, and protesters near Freedom Plaza, where people lit small fires.

 

Spurred on by false claims of fraud, Trump supporters rally in Washington




WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of President Donald Trump’s supporters marched through downtown Washington on Saturday, echoing his unsubstantiated claims of election fraud and cheering as his motorcade drove past.

A week after Democrat Joe Biden clinched the election, Trump, a Republican, has refused to accept the outcome and has launched a flurry of dubious legal challenges to overturn the results. Election officials around the country have said they saw no evidence of serious irregularities.

Carrying flags and chanting “stop the steal,” the protesters walked from Freedom Plaza near the White House to the U.S. Supreme Court building on Capitol Hill as part of the “Million MAGA March,” referring to Trump’s campaign mantra of “Make American Great Again.”

Trump’s motorcade briefly drove through the crowds on the way to his golf course in Sterling, Virginia. Demonstrators cheered as the president, wearing a red baseball cap emblazoned with the slogan, waved from inside the presidential limousine.

“They will not stand for a Rigged and Corrupt Election!” Trump wrote on Twitter, saying hundreds of thousands had taken to the streets. Police gave no official crowd size, but witnesses said it was far smaller than Trump’s estimate.

Donald Tarca Jr., who traveled to Washington from West Palm Beach, Florida, held a massive U.S. flag sporting a giant portrait of Trump.

“I think it was rigged on multiple fronts,” he said of the election. “Also, the media was so biased that they convinced millions of Americans to vote for Biden. They hate Trump.”

Scores of members of the far-right Proud Boys group, mostly clad in black with some wearing helmets and ballistic vests, were among the marchers. Some left-wing groups staged small counter-demonstrations, including members of the loose movement known as antifa.

Near the Supreme Court, some counter-protesters carried black umbrellas and makeshift shields, while others formed a line of bicycles to prevent pro-Trump protesters from approaching their group from the rear. They called Trump supporters “Nazis;” the protesters shouted back a profanity about antifa.

Reuters witnessed at least half a dozen scuffles and several tense standoffs, but the violence appeared isolated.

One person was stabbed and rushed to a trauma center, a spokeswoman for the city fire and emergency medical services department said. The Washington Post reported that the stabbing occurred amid a melee between Trump supporters, some carrying batons, and counter-protesters that broke out around 8 p.m.

The city’s police department had made 10 arrests by mid-afternoon, a spokeswoman told Reuters, including four for firearms violations, two for assault and one for assaulting an officer.