‘Stop the count!’: Violent clashes break out in the aftermath of Donald Trump, Joe Biden election
Chaotic scenes erupted across America as Donald Trump supporters took their fight to the streets of Philadelphia and Detroit, while anti-police demonstrators descended on New York.
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Duelling pro-Donald Trump and Joe Biden protests emerged in Pennsylvania, as election workers counted ballots for the crucial swing state in the 2020 presidential race.
The “count every vote” and “stop the steal” demonstrations unfolded outside the Pennsylvania Convention Centre, as Democratic presidential hopeful Biden took a lead of more than 8,000 votes over Trump.
From the crowd of hundreds of protesters, only about two dozen were supporting Trump and his Make America Great Again agenda, repeating the current President’s baseless claims of election fraud.
“Stop the cheat! Joe got beat!” the MAGA hat-wearing Trump supporters chanted outside the convention centre in Philadelphia that was surrounded by a heavy police presence.
At one point, cops with bicycles formed a human barrier to separate the pro-Trump and pro-Biden supporters.
“It’s time for this administration to surrender for democracy,” one speaker for the “Count every vote” protest declared. “If you come for Philadelphia, we’ll come for you!”
Another Biden-supporting speaker added, “If Donald Trump needs help moving out of the White House, we know a good moving company.”
It comes as chaotic protests escalated across the United States with Donald Trump’s supporters taking to the streets of Detroit and Los Angeles in opposition to the election count.
With defeat looming, Trump launched multiple legal challenges, announcing lawsuits in Georgia, Michigan and Pennsylvania and demanding a recount in Wisconsin, where Biden won by 20,000 votes.
In Detroit, a Democratic stronghold city that is mostly black, Trump supporters chanted “Stop the count!” and tried to barge into an election office before being blocked by security.
An aggressive pro-Trump crowd also gathered outside a vote counting office in the Arizona county of Maricopa, which includes Phoenix.
The protesters, some of whom were carrying guns – as is legal in the state – chanted “Count the votes!”, as law enforcement officers formed a protective line at the facility’s doors.
TheLos Angeles Times reported that demonstrators played YG and Nipsey Hussle’s song FDT (F**k Donald Trump) during the unrest.
Michigan Attorney-General Dana Nessel urged protesters to stop. “Dear members of the public: Please stop making harassing & threatening calls to my staff,” Ms Nessel tweeted.
“They are kind, hardworking public servants just doing their job. Asking them to shove Sharpies in uncomfortable places is never appropriate & is a sad commentary on the state of our nation.”
The Trump campaign filed a suit to halt vote tabulation in Michigan, saying its “observers” were not allowed to watch at close distances.
And while Trump was demanding that vote-counting be halted in Georgia and Pennsylvania, where he is leading, his supporters were insisting that it continue in Arizona and Nevada, where he is trailing.
There were anti-Trump protests in Portland, Oregon, resulting in at least 10 arrests, and businesses in several other major cities have boarded up windows as a precaution.
Tensions are escalating in Los Angeles, from downtown to Beverly Hills, where Trump supporters – sporting Make America Great Again caps – stormed Rodeo Drive.
In the city’s business district, anti-Trump campaigners held a Refuse Fascism rally, calling for “all votes to be counted”.
It came thousands of New Yorkers yesterday held peaceful demonstrations in Manhattan, but as night fell the protest became a heated confrontation and turned into clashes leading to nearly 60 arrests.
A man shoved an NYPD cop to the ground and tried to strangle the officer with a chain during Lower Manhattan protests on Thursday night, according to the New York Post.
The alleged attack occurred in Greenwich Village during the second consecutive night of demonstrations in the area, police sources said.
The NYPD tweeted out a photo of the chain with the message: “Violence – in any form – is unacceptable. We will be reviewing this incident, and bring any additional perpetrators to justice.”
Meanwhile, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and members of the press were shoved by police during another Lower Manhattan clash on Thursday night.
The confrontation came as much of the rest of the US remained on edge and protesters blocked roads from New York to Arizona.
Protesters shut down traffic in Manhattan and marched from Fifth Ave towards Washington Square Park in the heart of Manhattan’s Greenwich Village.
In Minneapolis, police arrested protesters blocking the interstate 94.
In Detroit protesters surrounded a ballot processing centre and police had formed up in case the protest turned ugly.
Cries of “stop the count!” rang out in Michigan State – where US media declared Biden the victor as Trump supporters demanded a halt to ballot counting.
Social media clips showed protesters with fists raised prevented from entering a ballot processing centre by police.
In Boston hundreds of demonstrators gathered to demand transparency and thoroughness in the election and called for a new political party and system, expressing their unhappiness with both candidates.
In Phoenix Arizona, Trump supporters gathered to protest at the Maricopa County Elections office, demanding to be let in.
Hundreds of state police and protesters were locked in a tense standoff in downtown Portland after rampaging anti-Trump groups smashed shop windows a day after the election, prompting the state governor to activate the National Guard.
There were at least nine arrests, in the city’s downtown area as police warned there was “widespread violence” and they could deploy munitions and tear gas.
Armed police advanced on demonstrators in unison but there were no reported clashes.
Portland has been the scene of months of clashes between police and protesters, angered at the repeated killings of Black Americans by police.
Protesters who had gathered by Portland’s river vowed to “protect the results” of Tuesday’s close-run election and held banners proclaiming “Count Every Vote” and “The Vote is Over. The Fight Goes On.”
“We want Trump out of office, that’s the main focus,” one protest leader told the crowd, to loud cheers.
But several of the demonstrators were openly carrying firearms, including rifles, and one anti-racism and anti-imperialism banner showed an image of an assault rifle, with the slogan “We Don’t Want Biden. We Want Revenge.”
In Portland, Governor Kate Brown activated the National Guard after demonstrators reportedly engaged in widespread violence downtown, including smashing windows.
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