COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — Two days after the second nationwide No Kings protests concluded, News5 spoke with one political expert to analyze whether the demonstrations will create lasting political change.
Roughly seven million people participated in Saturday's protests across the country, representing about 2% of the U.S. population.
The turnout marked a significant increase from the first No Kings protest four months earlier, with over 2 million more participants joining the second demonstration.
"I believe in the Constitution, and I believe in the people of our country. And together we need to stand up against this fascist regime," one demonstrator said.
"We just want to make sure that we are demonstrating peacefully and let our voices be heard," another participant said.
Colorado State University Pueblo political science professor Ryan Strickler said the protests' broad messaging helped minimize divisiveness.
"At some level, it's going to be necessarily divisive just because it's focused on President Trump, right?" Strickler said. "By not making it ideological necessarily, not making it like you have to support these various progressive policies to be a part. I think they did a good job of making it as not divisive as possible."
While the demonstrations fell short of the 3.5% population threshold that Harvard research suggests is needed for reform through peaceful protests, Strickler believes the movement could still influence political dynamics.
"Two big protests is, I think for organizers, they probably just see that as just a start, right?" Strickler said.
He emphasized that transformative change typically requires years to accomplish.
“Civil rights movement, mobilize the opposition against the Vietnam War. Those were years and years long.”
However, Strickler theorized the demonstrations could prompt shifts within the Democratic Party.
"Maybe it’ll push Democratic politicians to kind of stand firm a little more and not acquiesce to the request or demands from the Trump administration. I think that could be one of the big effects of the No Kings protest,” Strickler said.
The increased participation between the first and second protests suggests momentum may be building for future demonstrations, according to organizers and political observers.
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