LOS ANGELES, CA – The “No Kings” coalition is holding a fourth day of action across Southern California this weekend, but this time the events are nonpartisan voter-participation drives ahead of the Nov. 3 general election rather than protests, according to the coalition’s website.
The “No Kings: Vote Early” events are scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 17. The main downtown Los Angeles rally is planned for Gloria Molina Grand Park, 200 N. Spring St., beginning at 1 p.m., with a march set for 2 p.m. The coalition’s website lists several dozen other events across the region, from Santa Clarita to San Diego.
Organizers prohibit candidate endorsements, party promotions and active campaigning at the events. The earlier No Kings protests, held over the past year or so, targeted President Donald Trump, immigration enforcement crackdowns, the war in Iran and high gas and food prices.
The day falls just ahead of two election milestones: the last day to register to vote online is Oct. 19, and Los Angeles County vote centers open for early in-person voting Oct. 24.
A different focus from earlier No Kings protests
The coalition describes the day in its own words. “No Kings: Vote Early is the next step of reclaiming our power after a year of mass mobilizations,” the No Kings website says, calling it “a day of nonpartisan voter participation, being in community with each other, and making sure every eligible voter has a plan, knows their options, and is ready to make their voice count.”
The first No Kings protest took place June 14, 2025, on Trump’s birthday. The name was meant to protest what critics called the authoritarian policies of the president.
In March, an estimated 8 million people took part in about 3,300 events in the United States and overseas, according to initial reports. That was an increase of 1 million participants over the October 2025 No Kings event.
In Los Angeles, the earlier protests produced a major flashpoint near City Hall and the Metropolitan Detention Center.
Downtown rally and march at Grand Park
The flagship Los Angeles event is the Grand Park rally, which begins at 1 p.m. on Saturday. A march is scheduled to start at 2 p.m.
Organizers have said they expect tens of thousands of people at the various rallies across greater Los Angeles. The coalition has not published a breakdown of how many are expected at each site.
Events planned across six counties
Events are scheduled in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura and San Diego counties, with roughly 33 in Los Angeles County and six in Orange County, according to initial reports. Most run two to three hours, from 7:30 a.m. in Tustin to 8:30 p.m. in Highland Park.
In Los Angeles County, listed events include Burbank from 10 a.m. to noon at Abraham Lincoln Park, Culver City from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at City Hall and Pasadena from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Colorado Boulevard and Fair Oaks Avenue. Others are Santa Clarita from 9 a.m. to noon at Valencia Boulevard and McBean Parkway, Torrance from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at City Hall and Whittier from 12:30 to 2 p.m. at City Hall, 13230 Penn St.
Glendale’s event runs from noon to 2 p.m. at Veterans Memorial, 613 E. Broadway. Long Beach is listed from 10 a.m. to noon at Junipero Avenue and East Ocean Boulevard, Monterey Park from 10 a.m. to noon at Atlantic Boulevard and Riggin Street, and Sherman Oaks from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 14311 Ventura Blvd.
In Orange County, Huntington Beach is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the pier, Irvine from 3 to 5 p.m. at Trabuco Center and Tustin from 7:30 to 10 a.m. at 17227 17th St. Inland Southern California events include Riverside from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Market Street and University Avenue, Rancho Cucamonga from 10 a.m. to noon at Foothill Boulevard and Haven Avenue, Corona from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 1156 E. Ontario Ave. and Big Bear from 1 to 4 p.m. at 42170 Big Bear Blvd.
LAPD says it does not anticipate issues
Los Angeles Police Department spokesperson Rosario Cervantes said additional law enforcement would be deployed across the city on Saturday. “We’ll [have] sufficient amount of officers if anything arises during that day,” she said, and the department did not say how many officers would be deployed or where.
The department also said it is aware of the rally and does not anticipate any issues.
LAPD’s published crowd management directive, issued in April 2021, is meant to help officers tell lawful from unlawful assemblies and to facilitate legal First Amendment activity. It says officers should not consider the political affiliation or message of those assembling and should initially use the least visible law enforcement presence necessary.
Orange County deputies to focus on First Amendment rights
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department will also deploy additional deputies on Saturday, Sgt. Gerard McCann said. He said most of the department’s attention would be on protecting the rights of those taking part.
“Most of our focus, though, is going to be on making sure that everybody’s First Amendment rights are protected,” McCann said. He said enforcement would come only if there is criminal activity or vandalism, adding that deputies would enforce the law if that occurs.
March protest ended in 72 arrests
The previous No Kings protest in downtown Los Angeles, on March 28, ended in 72 arrests, according to an LAPD statement from the chief of police. The arrests followed a dispersal order.
The statement says 63 adults were arrested for failure to disperse, one adult for possession of a dirk or dagger and eight juveniles for failure to disperse. It says teams of officers contained a group on Alameda Street and conducted mass arrests, and that one officer and two Mounted Unit horses suffered minor injuries.
Before that protest, Mayor Karen Bass called the planned demonstration democracy in action in a social media post. “Peaceful protest is our constitutional right. When people come together to make their voices heard, that is democracy in action,” she wrote.
Early voting options and key dates
The California Secretary of State’s page for the Nov. 3 general election says the last day to register to vote online is Oct. 19. It also says the first vote centers open for early in-person voting in Voter’s Choice Act counties on Oct. 24, with statewide early voting locations available Saturday, Oct. 31.
County officials were to begin mailing ballots by Oct. 5, and secure ballot drop-off locations were to open by that date. Mailed ballots must be postmarked on or before Nov. 3, according to the Secretary of State.
The state’s plan-to-vote page lists the ways to cast a ballot: by mail, at a drop box, or in person at a polling place or vote center. It says early voting opportunities are available in many communities and that Election Day remains an option for those who prefer to vote in person.
The Secretary of State’s quick facts page says all active registered voters receive mail ballots. It says polling locations are set by county elections officials and are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, and directs voters to a state early-voting locator and a ballot-tracking tool.
Online registration closes Oct. 19
The Oct. 17 events begin with Tustin at 7:30 a.m. and the Grand Park rally at 1 p.m. in Los Angeles. The coalition says the events are meant to help each eligible voter make a plan and know their options.
Online registration closes Oct. 19, Los Angeles County vote centers open Oct. 24, and Election Day is Nov. 3.
