A large crowd gathered outside the White House on Tuesday evening in Washington, DC, as election results began to come in around the country.
Video footage showed people standing near a fence with multiple signs hanging from it, with phrases such as “Resist,” “Fuck Your Fence,” and “Black Lives Matter” written on them:
Nearby at Black Lives Matter Plaza, the Metropolitan DC Police made what was reportedly the first election-night protest arrest when a man refused to leave the area so an illegally parked vehicle could move, according to Breitbart News.
“Multiple officers had to wrestle the man to the ground. Others kept the crowd back as they tried to help free the man,” the report said.
On Monday, Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage toured the city and showed businesses boarded up in anticipation of possible civil unrest during election night, Breitbart News reported.
“You might think, looking behind me, that everything’s normal in Washington D.C. — it isn’t,” he said.
“The place is being boarded up… and this is right throughout the city, and this is in anticipation of real violence following the result, or even an inconclusive result, of the election,” Farage continued.
Last week, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents were reportedly ordered to prepare for possible unrest and told to be ready to protect federal property in the city, according to NBC News:
The agency is regularly tasked with providing additional security around the nation’s capital on inauguration days, but has never stepped in to quell unrest on Election Day. The unprecedented step is in response to nationwide protests and attacks on federal property seen this year, the officials said.
On Monday, workers began installing security barriers around the White House, federal buildings, and other main streets in preparation for election night, Breitbart News reported.