Gov. Wolf Activates PA National Guard As Armed Marches Threatened

PENNSYLVANIA — With the nation still reeling from the attack on the U.S. Capitol last week, state officials in Pennsylvania are bracing as new threats face the state capitol in Harrisburg this weekend.

About 450 additional Pennsylvania National Guard members have been activated, as online groups called for an "armed march on all state capitols" and Washington D.C. this Sunday afternoon.

“I will not allow what happened at our nation’s capital to happen here," Gov. Tom Wolf said on Thursday.

Soldiers will reinforce existing local and state police forces in Harrisburg. A spokesperson for the Pennsylvania State Police said that planning is ongoing and they're prepared "in the event of any unrest."

On the heels of the riots at the U.S. Capitol last week, the FBI sent a memo to authorities across the country warning of the potential of more armed protests in states across the country, including Pennsylvania.

“The men and women of the Pennsylvania National Guard are trained and prepared to ensure our citizens and infrastructure are safe and protected," Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler, Pennsylvania’s acting adjutant general, said Thursday.

Flyers calling for an "armed march on all state capitols" in the closing days of President Donald Trump's presidency have been circulating the internet for days, alarming researchers and security analysts tracking online threats on several social media platforms.

"When democracy is destroyed, refuse to be silenced," one advertisement reads. "Come armed at your personal discretion."

Officials are taking the threats seriously. Pennsylvania, the center of debunked claims about election fraud, played a crucial role in the 2020 election. Leading up to the day of the Capitol riots, it continued to be a focal point for Republicans rejecting the validity of the election. GOP leaders in the Pennsylvania state legislature urged the U.S. Senate to not certify the Electoral College vote in a letter last week.

"We are confident that PSP has the resources in place to protect Pennsylvanians against threats and to work with all levels of law enforcement to keep the Commonwealth safe," Pennsylvania State Police Cpl. Brent Miller said in an emailed statement to Patch.

The Pennsylvania National Guard, the second largest in the nation, has also recently activated about a thousand of its members to send to D.C. in support of security efforts surrounding Joe Biden's inauguration.