Hundreds gathered Saturday, Oct. 17, near The Oaks Mall in Thousand Oaks for a "No Kings: Vote Early" rally. The event at Hillcrest Drive and Lynn Road was one of two large demonstrations held across Ventura County that day.

The Thousand Oaks rally was peaceful. No incidents were reported, Ventura County Sheriff's Office Capt. Brian Slominski told the Ventura County Star.

A companion rally at the Ventura County Government Center on Victoria Avenue in Ventura drew an estimated 500 to 600 people, according to Ventura Police Department Cmdr. Todd Hourigan. No crowd estimate was released for the Thousand Oaks gathering. Smaller demonstrations were also listed at the Simi Valley library and a Highway 101 overpass in Thousand Oaks, according to the movement's website.

The rallies marked a shift for the national No Kings movement. Organizers rebranded the latest round as "No Kings: Vote Early," moving the focus from street protests to voter participation ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm election, the Star reported. Groups including the local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, 50501 and 805 Undocufund set up tents at the Ventura government center lawn to help with early voting and voter registration.

"'No Kings: Vote Early' is the next step in this growing movement, making sure we use our collective power at the ballot box," organizers said in a Sept. 8 news release, as reported by the Star.

The No Kings movement is organized by a coalition of progressive organizations, labor unions and activist groups, including Indivisible, the American Civil Liberties Union and MoveOn Civic Action. The events respond to President Donald Trump and what organizers describe as executive overreach, the Star reported.

Nationally, organizers planned roughly 3,000 events on Oct. 17, according to the Arizona Mirror. The events were billed as nonpartisan, though they built on nearly two years of No Kings marches by people opposed to Trump's presidency, according to PBS NewsHour.

The day of action came as the U.S. Department of Justice sought to stop California from counting certain vote-by-mail ballots tied to alleged noncitizens until citizenship status could be verified, a move California officials have disputed, the Star reported.

Early in-person voting in Ventura County began Oct. 5. Additional voting locations open Oct. 24. Voters can cast a ballot at any voting center in the county. Ballots mailed in must be postmarked by Nov. 3.

Upcoming community dates:

  • Oct. 19 — Last day to register to vote online through the Secretary of State's website
  • Oct. 24 — Additional in-person voting locations open countywide
  • Nov. 3 — Election Day; last day to vote in person, return a ballot or register in person