With former Vice President Joe Biden projected to secure enough electoral votes to become the next president of the United States there were celebrations immediately following the announcement on Saturday.
Smaller protests in support of President Donald Trump also sprang up in some US cities. The president has so far not conceded, and in a statement on Saturday said “this election is far from over” and promised further litigation.
In a scene that might portend what is to come, a group of about 50 Trump supporters and a smaller group of marchers carrying Black Lives Matter flags converged on the Michigan State Capitol where they pushed, shoved and shouted at one another in a tense standoff. But within moments of the race being called, a few from both sides broke into prayers and at least one pair hugged.
Tensions grew again when more Trump supporters arrived on the scene and BLM members retreated through the growing crowd.
So far, though, celebrations and revelry were carrying the day.
In Brooklyn, several hundred people were heard erupting in cheers and dancing in the streets and the air was filled with honking horns. There also was a banging of pots and pans. One car stopped in the middle of the street outside Barclays Center, the driver got out and jumped on the hood of his car, motioning for people to come in to the street; the car was soon swarmed by people cheering.
In the nation’s capital, people streamed into Black Lives Matter Plaza near the White House, waving signs and taking cellphone pictures.
In cities around the country, people flocked into the streets honking horns, banging pots and pans, and celebrating Biden’s projected win to become the 46th president of the United States.
But tensions remain high among some supporters of President Donald Trump, who believe his unsubstantiated claims that fraud has denied him a second term.
Trump is pledging to continue to fight his case in the courts.