D.C. police to fully activate through Nov. 5 election

The entire D.C. police department will deploy through at least the Nov. 5 election to ensure smooth and safe voting and protect other events in the city, Police Chief Pamela A. Smith said Tuesday. She also issued a stern warning against committing violence or intimidating voters.

All eligible 3,300 officers will work 12-hour shifts, with most leave time and vacations canceled. Smith said at a news conference that this is being done “to ensure we have enough officers on the street and in every corner of the District.”

Smith said that authorities know of no credible threat and that there is “no need for any alarm.” The police chief also said extra effort will be required to manage a variety of events expected to bring crowds into the District over the week.

Smith said Tuesday night’s speech by Vice President Kamala Harris from the White House Ellipse will require numerous road closures and is expected to draw upward of 52,000 people, a higher number than previously anticipated. The city’s 17th Street High Heel Race kicks off Tuesday night north of the White House, in the Dupont Circle area, and the Washington Capitals play the New York Rangers at the Capital One Arena. Halloween is Thursday. And voters are already heading to polls to vote early.

The police chief said the department will activate its Joint Operation Command Center to coordinate with federal authorities. She noted incidents in other parts of the country - ballot boxes were set on fire in the Portland, Oregon, area - and warned: “We will not tolerate any violence of any kind. We will not tolerate any riots. We will not tolerate any destruction of property.”

City officials have previously said that tensions are heightened this election period following the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection; a July assassination attempt that slightly wounded former president Donald Trump in Pennsylvania; and an alleged attempt on his life at a golf course in Florida. Harris is making her speech on Tuesday at the site where Trump spoke just before the Jan. 6 riot. This time, the counting of the electoral votes on Jan. 6 has been declared a “national special security event,” giving it the same high level of security as an inauguration.

Smith said police presence will be high in the city’s business districts, at early voting centers and at polling places on Nov. 5. “We will not stand for any instances of voter intimidation or disruption,” she said.

The chief said that if needed, she can call on officers from nearby jurisdictions to help. As is tradition, about 4,000 police officers from across the country will be sworn in to help with security for the presidential inauguration in January.

Assistant City Administrator Chris Rodriguez told D.C. Council members in a Tuesday morning briefing that while there is no indication of any credible threats in D.C., “we are preparing for historic crowds.”

“No matter who wins next week, it will be a historic election,” Rodriguez said, adding that officials anticipate crowd sizes similar to those during President Barack Obama’s first inauguration, one of the largest in city history.

Since 2020, Rodriguez said, federal and regional law enforcement partners have trained repeatedly for civil-unrest situations, even more so over the past eight months. “We are preparing for the potential for large-scale riots, destruction of property and counterprotests,” he said.

Lindsey Parker, chief of staff to Mayor Muriel E. Bowser, said that city officials held a briefing last week for local businesses - many of which suffered property damage in the 2020 social and racial justice protests - about what to expect and that roughly 500 people participated. She said officials would also brief school administrators this week, particularly those at schools that fall within or near the security perimeter surrounding the U.S. Capitol.