Washington D.C. braces for civil unrest by erecting riot fences and boarding up business prior to Election Day

Businesses are locking down in Washington as the capital braces for Tuesday’s sharp presidential election — and a possible repeat of the shocking violence that erupted in the aftermath of the 2020 election.

City officials have warned of a “fluid, unpredictable security environment” in the days and possibly weeks after polls close, adding that they do not expect a winner between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump to emerge on Election Day are declared.

The specter of January 6, 2021, the day Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to overturn the former president’s election loss to Joe Biden, hangs heavy over the preparations.

Rings of fencing now surround the White House, the U.S. Capitol and the residence of Vice President Kamala Harris.

“In many ways, our preparations for 2024 began on January 7, 2021,” Christopher Rodriguez, Washington’s assistant city manager, told a city council briefing last week on preparing for the election.

Four years ago, Washington was repeatedly rocked by sometimes violent demonstrations, from the Black Lives Matter protests during the pandemic-hit summer of 2020 to the deadly riot at the Capitol.

This time around, Trump has repeatedly refused to say whether he will accept the election results and is already accusing fraud and deception in swing states like Pennsylvania, laying the groundwork for what many fear will be more unrest.

“There are concerns throughout the city. We don’t expect full-fledged pandemonium like we saw after January 6, or four years ago,” Eric J. Jones, vice president of government affairs for the Apartment and Office Building Association of Metropolitan Washington, told The Washington Post.

“Honestly, it’s just fear,” Jones said. ‘I get emails and texts all the time because people are really engaged. … People prefer to be overprepared and not let anything happen, as opposed to the alternative.

“At a time when we’re trying to revitalize, especially our downtown, we don’t want to see any destruction of property that will prevent people from returning to the city, or that creates a situation where we’re trying to regenerate those areas build. Jones said.

Around the corner from the White House, workers have been hammering fresh-smelling plywood into place at several businesses along Pennsylvania Avenue and the Treasury Department complex.

Some businesses and property owners are preparing for the worst, fortifying windows and entrances at street level in case looting or rioting occurs.

An 8-foot-tall security fence crosses leafy Lafayette Park in front of the presidential mansion, with barricades stacked behind it as construction workers worked in unseasonably warm fall weather to build the stand that will be part of the inauguration ceremonies.

Work usually begins in November, but during the Capitol riot, workers were forced to flee as Trump supporters stormed the steps of the seat of Congress.

This year, the National Park Service said, construction began a month earlier “to accommodate the additional time needed to provide a safer environment for construction activities.”

During the city council briefing, Rodriguez warned in particular about disinformation on social media in the coming days and weeks that could affect security in the capital.

International events such as Israel’s war in Gaza add a “layer of complexity… that could lead to political violence,” he said.

The FBI said it was setting up a command post to monitor threats, while the Secret Service – the agency charged with protecting presidents, their families and senior officials – said it would “enhance our security posture if necessary.” are.’

“The Secret Service is working closely with federal, state, and local partners in Washington, DC and Palm Beach County, Florida to ensure a higher level of safety and security on Election Day,” the agency said in a statement on Sunday.

“These improvements are not a response to a specific problem, but are part of a broad range of public safety preparations for Tuesday’s elections.”

The Capitol Police, many of whose members were injured in the Jan. 6 attack, have not commented on security preparations, although Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser told a news conference they were “prepared.”

No “credible threat” against Washington during the election season has yet been identified, Washington Police Chief Pamela Smith said at a briefing.

Police will support peaceful protests, she said, but “we will not tolerate violence of any kind.”

“We will not tolerate rioting, we will not tolerate the destruction of property, we will not tolerate unlawful behavior,” she said.

All of D.C.’s eligible 3,300 police officers will work 12-hour shifts, with most leave canceled at least through the election “to ensure we have enough officers on the streets and in every corner of the district.” ‘

She promised a “visible” show of force in the city in the coming days and weeks, culminating in around 4,000 reinforcements for Inauguration Day on January 20.

On Friday, tourists crowded a spot on the Ellipse, the park in front of the White House where Trump told his supporters to “fight like hell” on January 6.

“Look at the guns,” one muttered as armed Secret Service agents stood silently in front of the barricades.