Seventeen days from the midterms, ‘No Kings’ rally in Concord aims to get out the vote

“No Kings” protesters descended on Concord once again, this time with a new focus. With the Nov. 3 election a little more than two weeks away, rallygoers hoped to get people out to vote.

Leslie Gray, of Webster, said she’s been to nearly all the “No Kings” rallies so far. She joined about a thousand people on the plaza in front of the State House on Saturday.

“What’s happened to people and democracy has radically changed this country in many, many ways, and the purpose of this one is to make sure we get the vote out so that we can make those changes through our voting system,” Gray said. “That’s how our democracy is run, through people voting for change.”

The demonstrations held across the country on Saturday were tailored to early voting, which doesn’t happen in New Hampshire.

Instead, a local organizer, Kaylie Efstratiou of the Coalition for Open Democracy, said she’s urging people to double-check that they’re registered to vote and make a plan for Election Day.

“We don’t care whether people vote Democrat, Republican,” Efstratiou said. “We’re just out here making sure that they’re registered. That’s the most important thing, so we can get as many people’s voices heard as possible.”

Citizens can also vote with an absentee ballot if they qualify for any reason listed under state law.

Despite the focus on voting, the underlying theme of the “No Kings” protests — anti-Trump — persisted. Many attendees waved signs criticizing the president and the Republican Party and advocating for democracy.