Richmond No Kings protest turns out hundreds ahead of midterm election

Virginians on Saturday utilized the fourth major “No Kings” protest in Richmond to drive out support around local issues and in favor of three proposed amendments to Virginia’s constitution that voters will decide on in November. 

It was one of dozens of anti-Trump demonstrations that were held in Virginia, and one of thousands held across the country — with only two weeks until the midterm elections that will decide who controls Congress.

The event, underscored by rainy weather, turned out about 400 people, far fewer than previous “No Kings” demonstrations in Richmond. A march on Capitol Square the same time last year drew over 10,000 people. 

Organizers stump for constitutional amendments 

Voters in Virginia will decide on three proposed amendments to the state’s constitution in November, and the organizers of “No Kings” asked them to vote “YES” for all three. 

The first amendment would cement abortion access and other reproductive rights in Virginia, which is the only southern state that has not enacted new restrictions since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

Han Jones, the campaign manager for Virginians for Reproductive Freedom, asked the crowd to vote “YES” on Question No. 1 because “at no point is a politician more qualified than you and your doctor to make personal decisions about your health care and pregnancy.”

“Once this constitutional amendment is passed, we are going to know that no politician can take our rights away with a swipe of a pen,” Jones said.

The second amendment would remove the state’s 2006 ban and permanently protect same-sex marriage.

Narissa Rahaman, the executive director of Equality Virginia, has been married to her wife for three years thanks to the advocates who fought for her right to do so, she said. Now she is asking Virginians to safeguard those rights with their ballots. 

“For more than a decade after the 2015 Supreme Court decision Obergefell v. Hodges, same-sex couples across this commonwealth have gotten married, raised kids, bought homes, started businesses and built lives together. But federal protections making those lives possible can shift with political winds,” Rahaman said. “As long as that ugly language from 2006 remains on the books, it represents a standing vulnerability, rather than a settled guarantee,” she continued. 

Ballot Question No. 3 asks voters if they would like to restore formerly incarcerated Virginians’ voting rights, and guarantee automatic restoration for people in the future.

Speakers asked the crowd to both exercise their right to vote in November, and use it to protect that right going forward.

“My rights are on the ballot!” demonstrators chanted. “Your rights are on the ballot! Our rights are on the ballot!”

Raising awareness around Flock cameras, immigration enforcement

Within the crowd, tabling groups handed out flyers to raise awareness around local issues. 

The Richmond chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America was one of those groups. They have been running an anti-automatic license plate reader — “BLOCK FLOCK” — campaign since at least the last “No Kings” protest in Richmond. They spent the event driving up support for their school board candidate Jackie McDonnough. She is running against Anne Holton, who was chosen by the School Board to fill a seat for the interim.

Other groups present were the Evict ICE Campaign, New Virginia Majority, the Virginia Defenders for Freedom, Justice and Equality and the historic Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which was founded by Martin Luther King Jr. 

The Liberal Women of Chesterfield County, Center for Common Ground and 50501 Virginia gave out information on how to register to vote. 

Merry Bateman, a 72-year-old Chesterfield woman, was one of those volunteers. She said she wanted to take advantage of “No Kings” to help get people registered, regardless of their political beliefs. 

“This is just an important day to help remind people about democracy, our need for it, the need to fight for it, and how important voting is. It’s our privilege and right, and we must do it to voice our needs and what we expect of our leaders,” Bateman said.

Protesters call out Republicans 

Antoni Szachowicz, one of 50501 Virginia’s lead organizers, emphasized the importance of voting in the upcoming midterm election. He said one way to fight the Trump administration is to vote out the GOP, or as he called them, the “guardians of pedophiles.”  

The crowd booed as Szachowicz mentioned the names of Virginia’s Republican congressional representatives who Democrats hope to vote out in November. 

The representative whose seat is considered most vulnerable to flipping blue is Jen Kiggans, R-2nd District. She is facing the seat’s former representative, Democrat Elaine Luria. A new poll has Luria leading by three points.  

In Virginia’s 1st Congressional District, longtime Republican Rep. Rob Wittman is facing Democrat Shannon Taylor, who is currently the Henrico County Commonwealth Attorney. 

And in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District, Trump-Republican Rep. John McGuire is facing Democrat Tom Perriello, who briefly held the district from 2009 to 2011. 

Jacob Seivers, 20, one of two pro-Trump observers who stood on the outskirts of the crowd, lives in Bedford County and is represented by McGuire. 

He called the speakers’ rhetoric about Republicans “hilarious” and “nonsense.” While he believes Congress will flip blue after November, McGuire will keep his seat, Seivers said. 

“McGuire will do fine, but midterms tend to be anti-cyclical, or against the sitting president,” Seivers said.

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