Watch the “No Kings” rally in Washington, DC
“No Kings” protesters took to the streets of Washington, D.C., holding placards, chants and puppets depicting President Trump and his Cabinet members.
The demonstration outside the Minnesota State Capitol building for the famous “No Kings” rally, in which Bruce Springsteen and Jane Fonda joined the bill, was the least notable development on the day of the March 28 protests.
Even more notable was the “No Kings” march in Staunton, Virginia. and Salisbury, Maryland. Rockford, Illinois. Beaver, Pennsylvania. Eugene, Oregon. Chillicothe, Ohio. Port Huron, Michigan. Flatwoods, West Virginia. In addition to over 3,000 locations nationwide, we also have locations around the world.
Sarah Elizabeth Greer, 56, called it “the sacred intertwining of democracy” as she marched through Manhattan pushing her two small dogs in a cart emblazoned with handwritten signs that read “No Barking” and “Chew Power!”
The left-wing protests calling for opposition to the revolutionary-era monarchist and authoritarian President Donald Trump had the widest geographic reach of any one-day protest in the United States in more than half a century. They included not only the familiar districts of New York, Los Angeles, and Austin, but also communities in all 50 states and every congressional district, including rural and Republican territory.
Although the atmosphere was generally positive and the marches were mostly peaceful, the third No King protest was definitely a show of political power that could have repercussions beyond the 2026 midterm elections.
The record-breaking protests foreshadow further upheaval in the run-up to November’s midterm elections, following a series of Republican losses in special elections, including a Democratic victory in the Florida House of Representatives representing the president’s home district.
Incidentally, the evening rally in West Palm Beach included a march down President Donald Trump Boulevard toward the president’s weekend mansion in Mar-a-Lago, but police turned the demonstrators back before they could get close enough to be seen or heard at the scene.
The White House had already dismissed the protests as pointless.
Press Secretary Abigail Jackson had previously called it a “Trump confusion therapy session,” and said only “reporters who are paid to cover it” were interested. Mike Marinella, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, called them the “Hate America Rally.”
Here are some takeaways from the latest and largest protest organized by a loosely organized group called No Kings.
1. Historic turnout
It was one of the largest protests in American history.
Although not yet verified by independent analysts, organizers estimated a total audience of 8 million people, higher than the 7 million estimated for the previous “No Kings” Day in October 2025. More events were planned this time around (3,300 vs. 2,700), with even larger crowds reported in some locations due in part to opposition to the Iran war.
The previous large-scale one-day protest in the United States was the first Earth Day in 1970, when an estimated 20 million people participated in environmental rallies and teach-ins.
Think about it. In a country of nearly 349 million people, 8 million people in attendance means more than 1 in 50 U.S. residents attended a No Kings rally.
Organizers say two-thirds of registered participants live outside of major cities, with a 40% increase in participants from suburban, small town and rural addresses from last time.
The first “No Kings” rally was held on June 14, 2025, the day President Trump presided over a military parade in Washington commemorating the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. military, which also happened to be Trump’s 79th birthday. These protests have drawn approximately 5 million people, a figure confirmed by the Crowd Counting Consortium sponsored by Harvard University and the University of Connecticut.
Four months later, an estimated 7 million people participated in the second “No Kings” march.
The large number of locations for the third event means that the march may have received less national news coverage than other iconic protests centered in Washington, D.C., such as the 1963 Washington Civil Rights March and the 1969 anti-war Vietnam Moratorium demonstrations.
But the fact that the rally took place in a local square and marchers headed to the streets of their hometowns also perhaps makes it harder for critics to dismiss the protests as the province of radical liberals on the East and West Coasts.
2. The messages were mixed
The demonstrators were united by their opposition to Trump and their support for the democratic institutions they accuse him of endangering.
In Columbus, Ohio, Beverly Vogely, 86, waved at passing cars with a red, white and blue sign that read “Stop Trump, Save Democracy.” In Wilmington, Delaware, a man held up a handwritten message on brown cardboard: “When the people rise, kings fall.”
The choice of Minnesota for the flagship rally also reflects widespread opposition to sweeping immigration raids by ICE agents in Minneapolis and elsewhere that have trapped some Americans, imprisoned thousands of illegal immigrants, separated immigrant families and led to mass deportations.
However, the No Kings movement lacked the point-by-point platform of a political party, with mixed priorities and potential conflicts over tactics and priorities.
The billboards opposed the Iran war, decried housing and health care costs, supported Ukraine in its war with Russia, and raised the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. Some of them called for Trump’s impeachment. “Arrest them!” one protester marched in Washington, D.C., demanding the display of a banner with the names of Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of the Army Pete Hegseth, Presidential Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt and others.
Some rallies also had “Abolish ICE” placards. At one of the marches in Washington, D.C., a Palestinian flag waved among the crowd.
3. The protesters were anti-Trump, but not necessarily Democrats.
Uniting against Trump doesn’t automatically mean the entire crowd supports Democrats.
The No Kings movement does not rely on the Democratic Party to organize its protests. We are building our own infrastructure using social media and digital resources. The coalition of labor unions, progressive activists, civil rights groups and others behind the group includes established organizations such as Public Citizen, Move On, and the Human Rights Campaign, as well as emerging groups such as Indivisible and 50501.
They are appealing not only to progressives who think Democrats are too moderate, but also to a growing number of independent voters, including centrists, who are disillusioned with both major parties. That could complicate efforts to deliver votes.
A woman’s sign in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, read, “Eggs are expensive in BC, all the chickens are in Congress.”
4. Protests could be important on Election Day
History shows that large-scale protests can be important in midterm elections, unleashing political energy and galvanizing voter enthusiasm.
The Tea Party movement, which began erupting in 2009 among conservatives opposed to President Barack Obama, is believed to have boosted Republican turnout in the 2010 midterm elections, giving Republicans 63 seats and a red wave majority in the House.
The 2017 Women’s March, which began with Trump’s first inauguration, contributed to the blue wave that saw Democrats flip 41 seats and take back the House in 2018.
Democrats are now increasingly confident they will flip the three or more seats needed to regain the House majority in November. While the 2026 map now suggests that Republicans could win a Senate majority in their favor, that possibility remains remote.
5. But sometimes blowbacks occur.
However, large-scale protests also carry electoral risks.
Protests against the Vietnam War energized young voters and liberal Democrats. But a backlash from older, more conservative voters led Republican Richard Nixon to campaign for law and order in 1968, narrowly defeating Democrat Hubert Humphrey in the race.
More recently, the conservative Tea Party’s takeover of some Republican organizations led to the nomination of untested and unvetted candidates in states such as Delaware and Nevada, which subsequently struggled to win statewide elections. Most analysts believe this cost Republicans any chance of regaining the US Senate majority in 2010.
Some Republicans now portray the No Kings movement as a group of radicals out of touch with mainstream political opinion. House Speaker Mike Johnson said it brought together “Marxists, socialists, Antifa supporters, anarchists, and pro-Hamas factions of the far-left Democratic Party.”
Marinella said the rally is “where the most violent and wildest fantasies of the far left take the microphone and House Democrats receive their marching orders.”
Despite the harsh rhetoric against President Trump and his policies, the march had a light-hearted tone and featured quite a few costumes, including various inflatable versions of the president. A giant inflatable frog danced at the front of the crowd at City Hall in Morristown, New Jersey.
In Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, a group of women wore fake Statue of Liberty crowns and carried lighted plastic torches.
Posted by: Eduardo Cuevas in New York.
