Hundreds of people marched through downtown Phoenix on Saturday, Oct. 17, as No Kings demonstrations across the Valley turned their focus to early voting, with Arizona's mail ballots already out and the Nov. 3 election 17 days away.
The Phoenix rally began at Grant Park, near Third Avenue and Buckeye Road, and ended at Maricopa County's ballot tabulation and election center, where many participants dropped off signed early ballots, FOX 10 Phoenix reported. The station and The Arizona Republic both described the crowd as numbering in the hundreds; neither cited an official count.
Sen. Ruben Gallego and Rep. Yassamin Ansari, both Arizona Democrats, spoke. Gallego held up his own mail ballot and urged people to vote, AZFamily reported, and Raquel Terán, executive director of Proyecto Progreso, told marchers the day was about using their ballots, according to FOX 10.
East Valley gatherings
The Republic reported smaller events closer to Queen Creek. In Chandler, more than 200 people gathered on the Galveston pedestrian bridge, a figure given by organizers with Chandler Gilbert Indivisible. Demonstrators also lined Stapley Drive near U.S. 60 in Mesa; no crowd estimate was published for that site. No event in Queen Creek itself appeared in the reports.
Statewide, the Republic counted a reported 46 events drawing thousands of people. Organizers described the day as a push for early voting and election protection, while many participants also voiced opposition to the Trump administration's policies.
