"No Kings" protests draw huge crowds across U.S.
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Protesters march along Pennsylvania Avenue during the second "No Kings" protest on October 18, 2025 in Washington, DC. Organizers expect millions to participate in cities and towns across the nation for the second "No Kings" protest to denounce the Trump administration. (Photo by Nathan Howard/Getty Images)
Nearly 7 million protesters gathered across the U.S. on Saturday to take part in rallies against President Trump and his administration.
Why it matters: This latest round of protests comes as the government shutdown approaches its third week and opposition to Trump's military crackdown on Democratic-led cities grows.
- According to a statement from the "No Kings" protest organizers, Saturday's turnout was "one of the largest single-day demonstrations in U.S. history" with over two million more people taking part than participated in similar protests in June of this year.
Driving the news: More than 2,700 events were planned as part of the protests across 50 states as of Saturday, as well as several internationally, including in London, Paris, Rome and Lisbon, Portugal.
- Organizing groups include the American Civil Liberties Union, American Federation of Teachers, 50501, Human Rights Campaign, Indivisible and MoveOn.
- "Across cities and towns, large and small, rural and suburban, in red areas and in blue areas millions of us are peacefully coming together for No Kings to send a clear and unmistakable message: the power belongs to the people," Katie Bethell, MoveOn executive director, said in a Saturday statement.
Friction point: GOP lawmakers condemned the movement as "a hate America rally" and cast blame on the protests for the continued government shutdown.
- Organizers rebuked the Republicans' claims.
The intrigue: Protests in 2025 have reached a wider swath of the U.S. than at any other point on record, according to a Thursday report from the Harvard Kennedy School.
- The current protest movement has reached deeper into Trump-voting areas than at almost any time during his first administration, the analysis found. Though those protests tend to be smaller than the nationwide average.
See photos from some of Saturday's protests below:
New York City
Boston, Massachusetts
Chicago, Illinois
West Palm Beach, Florida
Washington, D.C.
Go deeper: GOP's latest government shutdown scapegoat: No Kings protests
Editor's note: This story has been updated with comments and information from protest organizers.
