Democrats are divided over whether to attend President Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2025, as a formal boycott is taking shape as the first act of resistance against the president. Former Jan. 6 Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-Mississippi) said, “As someone who said he would lock me up, I’m excited to go see his inauguration.” I don’t think so,” he told Axios.
Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.) said as a Latina woman “I don’t feel safe coming” as Trump supporters crowded into the ceremony. “I have no intention of physically going to Washington, D.C., that day,” she told Axios.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said attending an MLK Day (Martin Luther King Jr. Day) event instead “makes sense, because the chaos that could occur here… There’s no need to put them at risk.”
This would be a repeat of what happened in 2017, but now Democrats have even more reason to boycott Trump: the Capitol riot.
But many Democrats are determined to attend the ceremony, believing that boycotting it would make the party look weak.
“That’s a good question,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (R-Vt.) said when asked if he would attend in January. “I never thought about it.”
Donald Trump Jr. intervened to make the decision easier for Democrats. “Apparently a large group of Democrats are planning to boycott my father’s inauguration, which is great because it gives room for more real patriots to attend. I have my complete and utter support,” Don Jr. posted.
In 2021, Trump did not attend Joe Biden’s inauguration or meet with the president-elect at the White House. President Trump chose to leave Washington directly from the White House following the Capitol riot that erupted after Trump said the election was “stolen.” But Biden hosted the president-elect last month and will likely attend the inauguration. Vice President Kamala Harris, who lost the election to Trump, will preside over the Senate, which will certify her victory on January 6.
