CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) — Thousands of area residents gathered along Route 29 on Saturday for the third “No Kings” demonstration, while another few hundred assembled near Forest Lakes, joining in nationwide protests against the policies of President Donald Trump.

Charlottesville Indivisible, which drew an estimated 7,000 in June to its first event and 10,000 in October for it second, organized the rally around the area of the Stonefield shopping center.  An orginization spokesperson told Cville Right Now Saturday’s event was at least as big as the turnout in October.

Unlike the previous two events, the land bridge connecting Stonefield with the other side of 29 allowed for more people to comfortably gather on either side. However, there were still enough people present to fill the sidewalks on both sides between Greenbrier Drive and Hydraulic Road, as well as the bridge itself.

“I think it’s getting bigger and bigger every rally,” attendee Cindi Scott, who was at the previous two “No Kings” rallies as well, told Cville Right Now.

At the event near Stonefield, the environment felt similar to previous outing, with music, dancing and costumes all adding to the lively environment. In addition, a protest statue of Trump dancing with Jeffrey Epstein made its expected appearance, with attendees snapping photos with the recreation of the art piece that was displayed on the National Mall in September.

Charlottesville’s event also included a number of tables set up by supporters of the redistricting referendum, who urged attendees to vote yes on the amendment, as well as volunteers with local Democratic congressional candidates, drumming up support for  Tom Perriello, Suzanne Kryzanowski and others.

Sophia Strycharz, a volunteer with Kryzanowski’s campaign, told Cville Right Now it the rally was fertile ground to gather signatures to get the candidate on the ballot.

“We figured this would be a crowd who is obviously pro-democracy,” she said. “Probably a pretty liberal crowd, but I think the democracy thing is the biggest part, because anybody can sign a ballot petition. 
It’s not a partisan thing.”

Up the road, more gathered at the intersection of 29 and Proffit Rd., where a couple of hundred protesters assembled near Forest Lakes, as they had done for the previous “No Kings” Day in October.

Officials estimated the first rally drew about 250 people, and Warren Muse, who ran the logistics for Saturday’s event, said he believed the turnout was about the same. He had hoped more would come, but regardless said the environment was very positive and brought him “hope.”

“If we’ve got this much energy, we can do something,” he said.

Overall, both events promoted a similar message to the previous two, encouraging unity against the actions of the Trump Administration.

“I know that united we, the people, have the power to stop the illegal, cruel, and destructive actions of this administration, and the power to create a better inclusive democracy in America,” Indivisible volunteer Kelly Hart told Cville Right Now.

But while the sight was enough to inspire hope in many, others wondered what the next steps were. Kevin Gates attended the Forest Lakes event and told Cville Right Now he did so to organize with other like-minded individuals. He said seeing the event made him feel “less hopeless,” but openly wondered what more could be done.

“Yes, this is working. getting people to honk at us. But are they out here? They’re not,” he said. “What we need to be doing is going and talking to all our congressmen. Get them to stop capitulating.”