Chicago Women's March 2018: 300K Gather For Rally, Organizer Says

CHICAGO, IL — On the heels of the ongoing #MeToo movement and with the momentum of last year's epic march, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered Saturday at Grant Park for the 2018 Women's March on Chicago. The turnout for this year's rally and march was larger than the 2017 demonstration, organizers said.

Shani Smith, the safety coordinator for the march, announced to the crowd that 300,000 people had gathered for this year's event. Last year, around 250,000 people attended the demonstration.

During the height of the march, a sea of people —dotted with pink knit hats, colorful protest signs, and young children on their parents shoulders— quickly flooded the expanse between Grant Park and Federal Plaza.

The theme of the event was "March to the Polls," and the focus was to motivate voters to take part in the state's primary midterm elections in March and the gubernatorial election in November.

Armed with protest signs, megaphones, and a palpable energy, marchers began gathering at Grant Park at 9 a.m. to get the energy going with music and presentations from speakers that include Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, and Chakena Sims, member of the board of directors for Chicago Votes.

>>Related: Best Signs, Photos, Moments From Chicago Women's March 2018

"This is more than a moment; this is a movement," Chicago City Clerk Anna Valencia said at the event. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and other city and state leaders also planned to participate in the march.

Speakers urged the crowd to support women of color, trans women, and women with disabilities, not only in future elections, but in the women's movement as a whole.

RELATED: Women's March Chicago 2018: Speakers, Closed Streets, And Schedule

The march was set to kick off at around 12:30 p.m., but was delayed as speakers kept taking the stage. Demonstrators began shouting, "Let us march! Let us march!" over the speakers after the start time had passed.

Some elderly participants and parents with children bowed out early as the rally continued past the designated march time. The crowd started moving around 1 p.m. as speakers were still at the podium.

A young girl named Ashanti who was at the march with her mother raised a mittened fist and said she was there "because women have to vote and women can work just as hard or harder than men." Another girl held a sign that read "Future President." Patch asked her what would be the first thing she would do as president.

Her response? "Be good."

Check back throughout the day for updates from the Women's March.

Participants gather for the Women's March on Chicago on Saturday, Jan. 20. (Photos by Lisa Farver | Patch Editor)