Orange County Residents Gather to Support Trump as Congress Counts Electoral Votes

Demonstrators partake in a Stop The Steal Rally, in Huntington Beach, Calif., on Jan 6, 2021. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif.—Two rallies in support of President Donald Trump in Orange County, California, taking place at the same time as the large-scale demonstration in Washington, D.C., were relatively peaceful compared to the eventual takeover of the U.S. Capitol Building later in the day Jan. 6. 

In Huntington Beach, nearly 100 people at the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway (PCH) and Main Street waving U.S. and Trump flags, and signs showing support for the president, were joined by drivers and passengers of about 60 vehicles circling the section across from the city’s pier.

Counter-protesters weren’t present, and only a few drivers passing through the scene shouted back opposition to those rallying for Trump to win an electoral challenge of Joe Biden’s election victory claim.

“I really believe that President Trump won the election,” Huntington Beach resident Carmela Avila, 63, told The Epoch Times. She’s been to about a half-dozen of the “Stop the Steal” rallies held locally since the election.

“This one is very important today because there’s a lot going on in D.C., and we don’t know what’s going to happen. I needed to be here today to be with like-minded people.”

A woman in a car waves a Trump 2020 flag at a Stop The Steal Rally, in Huntington Beach, Calif., on Jan 6, 2021. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

An openly gay married couple from Long Beach at the rally told The Epoch Times that the reason they were there supporting Trump was that they respect his support of the LGBT community and believe he won the election. The couple says they don’t vote based on their sexuality.

“What we love most about Donald Trump is that he’s not a politician. He doesn’t fall into politics,” Dhani Carter, 39, said. “We absolutely believe that the election was stolen. You could love him, you could hate him, but that doesn’t mean that he didn’t win by a landslide.”

Aric Roddy of Huntington Beach told The Epoch Times that he was at the rally to observe why Trump supporters were so passionate about him.

“I just wanted to see what everybody thinks,” Roddy said. “There really is no chance of him being reinaugurated on the 20th.

“I know all these people are trying to be patriots, but I think they’ve been brainwashed by a president that’s capable of brainwashing. What bothers me most is that he lies.”

Demonstrators partake in a Stop The Steal Rally, in Huntington Beach, Calif., on Jan 6, 2021. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

Just a few miles south, another Trump support rally was held in Newport Beach on the corner of PCH and MacArthur Boulevard with about 100 people.

Like the gathering in Huntington Beach, it was peaceful and counter-protesters didn’t appear.