Fact Check: Does a video show October 2026 'No Kings' protests across eight US cities?
WASHINGTON, DC: A collage of aerial videos circulating online claims to show “No Kings” protests held in Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Chicago, New York, San Diego, and Boston in October 2026. The clips have drawn attention because they appear to show demonstrations in several major US cities. Let’s fact-check the claim.
Claim: Videos show ‘No Kings’ protests held in eight US cities
No Kings Rallies as Americans express outrage over the state of the country https://t.co/NIbKV65uat
— Simon Ateba (@simonateba) October 17, 2026
Several X users shared a video collage of aerial clips that allegedly showed “No Kings” gatherings held on October 17 as part of the “No Kings: Vote Early” event. The video featured Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Chicago, New York, San Diego, and Boston.
According to its website, NoKings.org, “No Kings” is a movement against kings, dictators, and tyrants, focusing on US President Donald Trump and his administration. The website also states, “No Kings events are nonpartisan and are designed to increase participation from all eligible voters.”
A Facebook user reposted the video on October 17, and the post received millions of views. Its caption included the statement, “When citizens stand together and make their voices heard, the country should pay attention.”
The same user later claimed in another post (archived) that the video showed scenes from Saturday’s event, adding that “the news is ignoring it, and social media is censoring it.”
Other users also shared the video on Bluesky, Facebook, and X. Some claimed that the clips showed the previous Saturday’s gatherings, while others shared comments from people who believed the footage depicted those events.
Fact Check: The post is miscaptioned
The videos are authentic but have misleading captions. They show “No Kings” rallies held on October 18, 2025, not the October 2026 events claimed in the posts.
The progressive activist group Indivisible, one of the nine partner organizations listed on NoKings.org, shared the video montage on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms on October 18, 2025. Other users also posted the video around the same time.
Reverse image searches found matching clips and photos from the 2025 rallies in all eight cities featured in the video, including Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Chicago, New York, San Diego, and Boston.
Fact-checkers also reported at the time that some users falsely claimed that footage of the 2025 Boston rally aired by MS NOW, formerly MSNBC, actually came from 2017.
Earlier in 2026, some users also reposted the October 2025 footage and falsely claimed it showed “No Kings” demonstrations held on March 28.
The latest “No Kings” event, called “No Kings: Vote Early,” took place on Saturday and reportedly featured smaller gatherings than previous events.
Organizers focused on the upcoming midterm elections, with community activities such as block parties and cookouts. Indivisible also shared an authentic video showing glimpses of people participating in events across the United States.
