Washington DC is gearing up for potential chaos following Election Day as authorities assembled barriers around government buildings – including the vice president’s residence – and business owners boarded up storefronts over the weekend.
The series of security measures come on the eve of the high-stakes presidential race between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris — which has exposed deep divisions and heightened tensions in the US.
The Secret Service placed 8-foot-high metal fences around the White House, and Harris’ home at the Naval Observatory though officials warned there are no specific threats of violence at this time, the Washington Post reported.
Admiral Security Services is expected to have 2,000 private security guards work 12-hour shifts at properties around the city, its executive vice president Leon Beresford told the Washington Post.
The growing apprehension comes four years after the Jan. 6 riot on the Capitol and May 2020 protests over George Floyd’s murder that spiraled into violence. Mayhem also erupted before and after Trump’s 2017 inauguration where protesters smashed downtown windows and clashed with police.
Government buildings were also guarded with security fencing leading up to the 2020 presidential election.