By Chase Woodruff and Colorado Newsline staff

Posted on October 22, 2026

 

Hundreds of demonstrators rallied and marched near the Colorado Capitol on Saturday in the largest of dozens of planned No Kings events across the state, part of a nationwide day of action that organizers hope will encourage participants to vote and help protect the November election.

 

It was the latest in a series of No Kings events since President Donald Trump’s inauguration in January 2025. Protesters say the Trump administration has pursued authoritarian policies, such as disregard for the rule of law, abuses by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and attempts to meddle in elections.

 

Nita Gonzales, daughter of Denver Chicano activist Corky Gonzales and a longtime activist herself, addressed a crowd of hundreds of demonstrators gathered on the Capitol grounds and across Civic Center Park.

 

“Does this look like hopelessness? This looks like courage,” Gonzales said from the Capitol steps. “This looks like democracy. This looks like people reclaiming their voice and their power.”

 

Christy Aguilar, an organizer of the Denver rally, told Newsline she wanted the event to engage and represent Colorado’s Latino community in a way that previous events hadn’t.

 

“I’ve noticed the lack of Latino power in No Kings planning, I’ve noticed (the) Latino population not coming out to No Kings,” Aguilar said. “So this was my way of trying to get my community to come out and get them more involved in the polls, get them more informed of what’s going on. Because everything that’s on the ballot is affecting us personally.”

 

Nationwide, Saturday’s No Kings protests were focused on mobilizing voters to make a plan for heading to the polls, and to vote early if possible. National No Kings organizers were joined at a press conference in Washington earlier this week by Bishop William Barber, founder of the social justice group Repairers of the Breach and co-chair of the Poor People’s Campaign, who has organized 652 early-voting marches in 428 locations across the country this year.

 

Under Colorado’s universal vote-by-mail system, ballots were mailed to all active registered voters in the state beginning Oct. 2. Voters may submit completed ballots by mail or at a drop box or voting center. They may also vote in-person at a voting center. Eligible voters can visit GoVoteColorado.gov for more information and to check their registration status.

 

In an interview, Gonzales said the consequences of Trump’s actions over the last decade have been “horrific” for the Latino community and beyond.

 

“I’m a grandmother,” she said. “I don’t want my grandchild being raised in this kind of environment, where those that have more get more, and those that have less are at the bottom of of the rung and not able to have a life that they deserve to have. So then I get angry.”

 

Mark Lyons of Centennial told Newsline he hadn’t been involved in much political activism or organizing before last year. Saturday’s protest was his fourth No Kings event.

 

“I thought it’s time to get involved, it’s time to make a difference,” Lyons said. “It’s a community, and a lot of like-minded people, coming together for a common goal.”

 

With the midterms approaching, Lyons is hopeful that Democrats will take back Congress and “put all kinds of checks and balances” on the Trump administration.

 

“They’ve been stealing the country blind for the last two years,” he said. “There has to be accountability, and it can’t be business as usual.”

 

Protests in Colorado were planned in numerous locations throughout the Denver area, and in cities such as Fort Collins, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Grand Junction and Durango.

 

“The No Kings movement stands ready to mobilize in response to attacks on our elections,” the No Kings website says. “By signing the No Kings pledge, you commit to be part of the solution, ready to join mass nonviolent action in rapid response to election disruption and subversion if needed.”

 

Aly Belknap, executive director of Colorado Common Cause, urged rally-goers to help “defend the vote” against the lies about widespread voter fraud promoted by Trump and many other Republicans. Her organization is leading a coalition of groups that are training nonpartisan, volunteer poll monitors to observe polling sites and drop boxes to protect against subversion next month.

 

“We know that we have debunked this lie over and over and over, and yet these are the lies that constitute what our neighbors and our family members and even our friends have been drawn in to believe,” Belknap said. “Why? … (Because) the people in power, they would like to decide who wins.”

 

Gonzales told the crowd to vote — “and then after you vote,” she added, “you get yourself out to defend your neighbors and communities, and stand up against ICE.”

 

“Voting is step one, but it is also about continuing to be active in neighborhoods and communities, to defend your neighbors, stand up, whatever that call comes, and not become complacent,” Gonzales told Newsline. “That’s what went wrong — we got complacent. We have to be vigilant, and we have to protect democracy and freedom, and that means standing up.”

 

 

Chase Woodruff is a deputy editor reporter for Colorado Newsline. This article is republished from Colorado Newsline under a Creative Commons license. Colorado Newsline is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.