On the eve of a vote by the House of Representatives to impeach President Donald Trump, hundreds of people gathered throughout the Bay Area to demand that he be removed from office.
The demonstrations on Tuesday, Dec. 17, were planned for about 20 locations around the Bay Area, in Oakland, San Francisco, Mountain View, Lafayette, Castro Valley and Palo Alto, to name but a few.
At 5 p.m. a crowd gathered around the intersection of Castro Street and El Camino Real in Mountain View holding candles, signs and chanting slogans.
“Hey, Hey, Ho, Ho, Donald Trump has got to go,” demonstrators chanted according to former Mayor Lenny Siegel, who hosted the demonstration.
Siegel said it was held at that intersection because it is visible to a lot of traffic. He said demonstrators received a lot of supporting honks from drivers passing by.
A demonstration also took place at Lytton Plaza in downtown Palo Alto. Ruth Robertson, who helped organize the rally, said people lined University Avenue and waved at drivers who honked in support. She said high school and Stanford University students came out as well as children as young as 5.
A 6-foot by 8-foot inflated effigy of Trump as a chicken was popular with children, Robertson said.
Among all demonstrators, “there were a lot of smiles and excitement,” she said.
In both events no counter-demonstrators were present. Organizers said they plan to demonstrate again when the Senate takes up impeachment, expected sometime in January.
Trump was impeached Wednesday, in a vote mostly divided along party lines, on two articles: abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.
Trump allegedly abused his power by pressuring Ukrainian officials to investigate 2020 U.S. presidential candidate Joe Biden and his son ahead of the election, and the president then allegedly obstructed an investigation into those actions.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, said following the votes, “Dec. 18. A great day for the Constitution of the United States. A sad one for America that the president’s reckless activities necessitated us, our having to introduce articles of impeachment.”
It is the third time a U.S. president has been impeached. The impeachment process will continue in the Senate, where the president will be on trial.