Protesters at an official “No Kings” event in Alexandria, Virginia, openly promoted [1] Democrats despite national organizers insisting that the nationwide demonstrations against President Donald Trump were supposed to remain nonpartisan.
Along South Washington Street, 26-year-old environmental engineer Nayely Cruz Hernandez delivered a blunt message to voters: “Vote blue.” She joined protesters lining the street while carrying Maybellene, her 13-year-old Maltese poodle.
“We got to take the power away from Trump, from the Republicans,” Hernandez told Fox News Digital. “So we got to win the House, we got to win the Senate, not only in Virginia, but across the country.”
Hernandez stood beside her boyfriend, 25-year-old Noah Schwarzott, and acknowledged that national organizers had rules requiring protests to be nonpartisan. She made clear that she had no intention of following those instructions.
“The No King … organizers can say whatever,” she said. “But I’m saying vote blue, because why are we here? Who’s in the House? Who’s in the Senate? Who is the President? It’s red, it’s Republicans, and it’s Trump.”
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A Fox News Digital investigation documented about 300 organizations with $2.5 billion in combined annual revenues behind the protest network. The organizations included Democratic aligned advocacy groups, major labor unions, and nonprofits such as MoveOn, the American Federation of Teachers and the ACLU.
Hernandez concluded by introducing Maybellene and declaring that the dog was “telling you to vote for Don Beyer.” Beyer is a Democratic member of Congress representing Alexandria, Arlington and other Northern Virginia communities.
National organizers have maintained that the Oct. 17 events must be nonpartisan to comply with federal laws regulating nonprofits that fund the protests. Written instructions prohibited appeals to “vote Blue,” efforts to elect Democrats, candidate endorsements, and targeting individuals.
The signs in Alexandria were not exactly subtle. One man carried a sign from the far-left group Refuse Fascism declaring, “TRUMP MUST GO NOW!” while another person displayed an inflatable balloon mocking Trump as a baby wearing a diaper.
Another sign read “86 47,” the message former FBI Director James Comey posted on social media and which federal prosecutors deemed an overt threat against Trump. A woman also waved a sign reading, “THE USA Needs a Big Beautiful BLUE WAVE.”
Eunic Epstein-Ortiz, national spokesperson for No Kings, called Fox News Digital and insisted the organization is a “nonpartisan, peaceful movement that has brought millions of Americans together to stand up for democracy, defend our freedoms, and reject authoritarianism.”
When told that events from Maine to Oregon appeared partisan, Epstein-Ortiz said, “We are aware of partisan events circulating online that are not affiliated with or officially organized by No Kings. Many people utilize the No Kings name as a rallying cry.”
That explanation did not fit the Alexandria demonstration, which was advertised on the organizers’ official website. Hours later, Fox News Digital encountered another participant marching at an official event on H Street NW near the White House.
Nadine Seiler, a self-described “professional protester” recently mentioned by Trump, rejected the claim that the demonstration was nonpartisan. “No, no, the people who agree with Trump are not out here,” she said from behind an inflatable costume.
“So it’s never gonna be non-partisan if it’s a resistance to the fascist regime,” Seiler continued. Asked directly whether the demonstration was partisan, she answered, “Yes, this is a partisan protest.”
Seiler said participants were resisting what she described as illegal Trump administration policies. “Yeah, so this is as partisan as you can get,” she concluded.
The movement has distributed detailed election law guidance barring partisan slogans, campaign materials, endorsements and coordination with political parties. At the same time, its own leadership has discussed broader Democratic electoral objectives.
During an Oct. 15 livestream, Indivisible co-founder Ezra Levin contrasted candidates from the two parties. “Our candidates are quite good all around the country. Their candidates are quite trash all over the country,” Levin said.
During an Oct. 9 webinar, Levin described how activists could criticize Trump without making explicit Democratic endorsements. “Uh, you’ve got to let people connect the dots on that one,” he said.
Indivisible co-founder Leah Greenberg has described No Kings as a “nonpartisan coalition” welcoming participants across the political spectrum. Individual protesters expressing partisan views do not automatically establish that organizers violated election law, and tax-exempt charities face different restrictions from political advocacy groups.
Still, demonstrators from Northern Virginia to the White House made little effort to hide their political preferences. Signs declared, “EVERY DAY I HATE HIM MORE THAN I DID THE DAY BEFORE” and “NO CROWN FOR THE CLOWN,” while Seiler supplied the simplest description: “This is as partisan as you can get.”