National Guard Moves Into Chicago To Quell Possible Election Unrest

Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has mobilized the National Guard to Chicago in preparation for potential unrest in the days following the 2020 general election.

Pritzker said he’s putting the military personnel “in state of readiness,” as he claimed the election results for the state may not be available until “Wednesday, or Thursday, or even Friday,” according to the Chicago Tribune.

The move to station the National Guard is reminiscent of an earlier decision by the city in September, which followed the controversial verdict to charge one of three Louisville, Kentucky, officers involved in the death of Breonna Taylor, the local outlet reported.

“It will possibly take until Wednesday, or Thursday, or even Friday to get results for some races in Illinois and in states across the country,” Pritzker said during a briefing, according to the Tribune. “Every vote must be counted, particularly on the national level. It is very important that we are patient with the presidential election. We may very well not know who won the election on Wednesday, let alone Tuesday night.”

The Chicago Office of Emergency Management said the National Guard detachment is stationed at a convention center and will deploy if called upon by city leaders, according to a tweet from the organization. Democratic Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot did not request aid from the National Guard, Fox News reported. 

“The City has not made any calls to deploy the National Guard in Chicago,” the emergency management office tweeted Monday. “Similar to past emergency preparedness plans, the State has stationed personnel at McCormick Place to be ready to respond if needed, however, there are currently no plans for them to be deployed.”

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