President-elect Trump set to hold rally in DC's Capital One Arena ahead of inauguration
WAHINGTON (7News) — President-Elect Donald Trump is expected to hold a "Make America Great Again Victory Rally" in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 19, the day before he is sworn in for a second term as president.
The rally, announced Wednesday by the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee, will take place at the Capital One Arena.
"We have made our arena available to every administration for inaugural events, dating back decades, irrespective of party," a Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE) spokesperson said in a statement to 7News. "We are happy that President Trump has accepted our offer and we will welcome him and his guests to Capital One Arena on January 19.”
The D.C. arena has a seating capacity of about 20,000 and theevent registration states it's scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. ET with doors opening at 11 a.m.
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This event will be Trump’s first rally in D.C. since his Jan. 6, 2021, speech on the Ellipse. That event preceded the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol by those seeking to overturn the 2020 election results. The Jan. 19 rally falls on the fourth anniversary of the riot.
Trump is set to take the oath of office at the Capitol on Jan. 20. Anti-scale fencing has already been installed around the Capitol complex, though road closures for the Jan. 19 rally have not yet been announced.
Rallygoers can expect heightened security procedures to be in place.
"While the Secret Service does not discuss specific means and methods of our protective operations, we are working closely with our federal and local partners to ensure the safety and security of President-elect Trump and all attendees during the event at Capital One Arena on Jan. 19," a U.S. Secret Service spokesperson told 7News. "While road closures and delays are to be expected, we strive to minimize disruptions to the public."
The Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee has not announced speakers for the rally.
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Matt Dallek, PhD, a graduate professor of political management at George Washington University who has written about the origins of homeland security, said having the rally indoors means a more controlled security environment.
“It's impossible not to think of a Trump rally in the heart of Washington, D.C., with thousands of people attending, and not think of the violent riot at the Capitol on January 6th," he said. "But doing it indoors, I think, makes it a little more contained.”
“I think it reflects also where we are as a society, four years after January 6 and also after the two failed assassination attempts against President-Elect Trump,” Dallek added.
Since last year, District leaders have been planning for major security as we get close to inauguration activities in the city.
“I think the biggest difference has to do with January 6 preparations. The election certification preparations. The kind of security apparatus is structured differently because it’s a national special security event. And the inauguration planning I think is proceeding as we would expect,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said at a press conference in late November.
The District has launched a website for all things inauguration. Click here to read more.
7News will update this story once we learn more details about the rally.