Roughly 40 people gathered under the dome of the Iowa Capitol Building in Des Moines on Monday to protest the election of Donald Trump and urge electors to “be brave,” as one sign read, and switch their votes away from Trump.
Electors across the U.S. are gathering in state capitals today to cast votes for president and vice president — and protesters are gathering as well.
In order to prevent Trump from becoming president, 37 electors would have to switch their votes, which is unlikely. Iowa’s six electors are expected to vote for Trump. After all the votes are cast, they are sent on to Washington, D.C., where they will be opened and officially counted on Jan. 6.
The election has raised questions about the use of an electoral college after Trump won enough electoral votes to take the Electoral College, but lost the popular vote. In Des Moines, protesters raised concerns about the electoral college being anti-democratic and said electors had a responsibility to vote against Trump.
The protesters also stressed that progressives should reach out to neighbors who feel left behind. Individuals had an opportunity to stand up and speak to the crowd and spoke on a variety of topics including the importance of unions in collective bargaining agreements and stories about family members who witnessed oppression or authoritarian regimes in their home countries before immigrating to the U.S.
The main organizers of the Iowa event were Democracy Spring, Americans Take Action, the Electoral College Petition and Progressive Change Campaign Committee.
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