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Dozens of people were arrested on election night as thousands took to the streets in major cities across the US during the tense wait for results.
In Washington, DC, more than 1,000 people converged on Black Lives Matter Plaza, blocking traffic and burning American flags in the protest just blocks from the White House.
The capital saw one of the most violent episodes, with members of the right-wing Proud Boys saying they were jumped and stabbed near the White House, as others were also seen slashing the tires of a parked police van.
Protesters in Minneapolis carried a large sign saying “America is Over!” — with some then throwing fireworks at cops, while also spray-painting graffiti over storefronts and setting fires, the Star Tribune said. At least 14 people were arrested for rioting or fourth-degree assault, police told the paper.
Police in Seattle, Washington, meanwhile arrested eight people as two anti-police protests blocked traffic — including one accused of driving over a barricade and through a line of bike cops. No one was injured.
Charges for the night included pedestrian interference, obstruction, assault on an officer, reckless driving and criminal mischief, police said.
In Los Angeles, more than 40 people were arrested after refusing to leave a large protest near the Staples Center that police declared an unlawful assembly, with at least 30 charged, police said.
Officers in riot gear surrounded those who refused to leave, cuffing their hands with zip ties and busing them off around 11 p.m., the Los Angeles Times said.
“They were running around downtown causing trouble,” LAPD Deputy Chief Vito Palazzolo told the paper. “We gave them every opportunity to disperse and they chose to remain, so we made the decision to make arrests.”
The National Lawyers Guild complained that five of its legal observers — clearly identified by green hats — were among the arrested, while a 17-year-old said he, his sister and a wheelchair-bound friend were busted as they stepped off a bus and were swamped by cops screaming, “Move!”
“Everyone was like, ‘Move where? You’re boxing us in!’” the teen told the LA Times.
The nightly anti-police protests in Portland, Oregon, continued Tuesday — with the sheriff’s office saying some demonstrators were openly carrying guns.
“This is what democracy looks like,” protesters chanted during the mostly peaceful protest in a city plagued by regular riots.
Hundreds of businesses in cities across the US boarded up their doors and windows ahead of the election, fearing the decision could spark violent protests.
“Some people would like to cause mayhem and trouble,” Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser said earlier in the day, adding she had never seen so many businesses being boarded up. “That all saddens me,” she said.
With Post wires
