Federal authorities are taking steps to avoid another Capitol riot by dramatically ramping up security for the joint session of Congress where electoral votes are counted on Jan. 6, 2025.
The certification of electoral votes in Washington, DC next year has been designated as a National Special Security Event by the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secret Service announced on Wednesday.
This marks the first time an electoral count has even been granted a National Special Security Event designation and follows a request made by DC Mayor Muriel Bowser.
The designation gives the event the "same level of security accorded to presidential inaugurations and political conventions," The Washington Post reported. It allows for significant resources from the federal government, as well as from state and local partners, to be utilized in a comprehensive security plan.
Various reports, including from the House Select January 6 Committee and the Government Accountability Office, also called for the special designation in an attempt to deter another attack on the Capitol.
"National Special Security Events are events of the highest national significance," Eric Ranaghan, Special Agent in Charge of the Secret Service's Dignitary Protective Division, said in a statement. "The U.S. Secret Service, in collaboration with our federal, state, and local partners are committed to developing and implementing a comprehensive and integrated security plan to ensure the safety and security of this event and its participants."
The formal planning process for security on Jan. 6 is currently underway. The Secret Service is the lead agency for the design and implementation of the operational security plan.
Additionally, the 2025 Presidential Inauguration on Jan. 20 was previously designated a National Special Security Event and planning has been ongoing for several months.
During a joint session of Congress to certify the election results in 2021, a group of Donald Trump supporters, driven by the lie that the election was stolen, stormed the Capitol. In the end, 140 officers were injured, and five died. Despite the former president and his supporters' efforts to say the event was peaceful, some officers who were present said the scene looked like a "war zone." More than 1,200 defendants have been charged in connection to the attack, the Justice Department reports.