St. Paul is preparing for a historic No Kings Day rally on Saturday, with police and organizers focused on crowd safety and traffic.
Police said Saturday’s march in St. Paul could draw as many as 150,000 people, which would likely be larger than the march at the end of January.
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More than 300 officers are preparing for the event along with the Minnesota State Patrol, Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office, Metro Transit, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the St. Paul Fire Department.
“There will be traffic disruption because we do want to get people safely to the Capitol,” Jesse Mollner said.
Mollner, a commander with the St. Paul Police Department, said officials are planning for safety concerns as the crowd grows. Police said the city is used to large political rallies and demonstrations at the Capitol.
“Being the Capitol city, we’re used to seeing these political rallies, demonstrations, marches, and we do have some element of counter-protests that happen,” Jesse Mollner said. “In every event that we have, we always give people space to exercise their First Amendment, and that includes the counter-protesters as well.”
On Selby Avenue, Andrew Locke said he plans to protest Saturday and does not expect much of a counterprotest presence.
“Because this time, there’s too much solidarity, they’re too big, and it’s too embarrassing to take the counter-position… So I don’t expect it,” Andrew Locke said.
Caroline Waters of Nina’s Coffee said businesses are looking forward to the crowds and the activity the rally could bring.
“Yeah, it’s great… We love the business, we love seeing everyone out, and with the weather, it’s going to be even better,” Caroline Waters said.
No Kings organizers also highlighted safety on their website, saying, “A core principle behind all NO KINGS events is a commitment to nonviolent action. We expect all participants to seek to de-escalate any potential confrontation with those who disagree with our values.”
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