Partisans for both President Trump and Joe Biden launched movements in Washington, D.C., to make sure that their candidate wins out.
The dueling rallies, both held on Friday, alleged that the other side is attempting to defraud voters. Biden supporters rallied under the slogan “Count Every Vote,” while Trump supporters cut the other way, shouting, “Stop the Steal.”
At a rally held in front of the Republican National Committee, former Missouri Republican Party Chairman Ed Martin told reporters and supporters that the RNC is not doing enough to support Trump in his efforts to uncover instances of fraud. Joined by former Kansas Rep. Jim Ryun, Martin also decried “the corruption” of “funded leftist organizations,” including Planned Parenthood and those backed by billionaire George Soros, in influencing the election.
“One key group we’re calling on to stand up and stop the steal and do your job is the elected Republicans across the country,” Martin said, promising that his organization will gather in every state capital on Saturday to petition Republicans to fight election results should Biden win.
Martin held a similar rally Thursday at which he called out Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, telling them to “step up” and speak on behalf of Trump.
Republicans, in general, have been reticent about supporting Trump’s statements regarding possible electoral fraud, instead urging that counts and recounts be done fairly and openly. A Facebook group called Stop the Steal launched on Wednesday to support the president. It attracted more than 300,000 members — making it one of the fastest-growing Facebook groups — before the social media company shut it down.
Trump, in a speech Thursday night, said that his opponents are “trying to steal an election” and “trying to rig an election” against him.
While Trump partisans have rallied around the president on the Hill, as well as in states where the vote is contested, down by the White House, ShutDownDC, the group that had promised an “uprising” if Trump did not accept election results held a “Count Every Vote” rally on both Thursday and Friday. The rallies featured ground organizers from Pennsylvania celebrating what they said is an all-but-certain Biden victory.
The event, like the protests on election night, attracted hundreds of people. Organizers set up a big screen to monitor results and handed out signs advertising the anti-Trump cause. A truck with the banner “count the votes” drove around the area, blocking off several streets, while people played go-go music in the back. Members of ShutDownDC held up signs shaped like eyes, with the slogan “We Are Watching.”
In a statement, the group cautioned that, while a Biden victory seems likely, they do not believe Trump will accept it.
“Already lawsuits are being filed to stop the count and to challenge our democracy,” the statement said. “We demand ballots be counted. Let the people decide.”
Trump, since it appeared likely that Biden has the upper hand in the electoral college, has insisted that the election is being unfairly decided.
“We believe the American people deserve to have full transparency into all vote counting and election certification, and that this is no longer about any single election. This is about the integrity of our entire election process,” Trump said in a statement Friday. “From the beginning, we have said that all legal ballots must be counted, and all illegal ballots should not be counted, yet we have met resistance to this basic principle by Democrats at every turn.”
