Trump Supporters Breach Capitol in Jan. 6 Riot

In the early hours of Wednesday morning, crowds of President Donald Trump's supporters began to arrive in downtown D.C., some praying together in groups, as they prepared for their second day of demonstrations.

Some arrived as early as 3 a.m. in order to see Trump speak at the Save America rally on the Ellipse, on the day that a joint session of Congress convened to count the Electoral College votes won by President-elect Joe Biden.

Following a day and evening of mostly peaceful but sometimes tense rallies and speeches that ended with six arrests, crowds were expected to be much larger Wednesday. Multiple groups received permits to host events with hundreds or thousands of people around the National Mall and near the White House.

The Metropolitan Police Department said it was expecting a crowd larger than those at two pro-Trump events in D.C. late last year. The D.C. National Guard will assist with crowd management and traffic control, officials said Monday.

“Some of our intelligence certainly suggests there will be increased crowd sizes,” said Acting Police Chief Robert Contee, adding, "There are people intent on coming to our city armed.”

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser encouraged people to avoid downtown on Tuesday and Wednesday as law enforcement braces for the possibility of violent confrontations between pro-Trump demonstrators and counterprotesters.

“Make no mistake: many of these individuals have stated that they are coming to the District to provoke residents and wreak havoc," D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine said.

Photos from Wednesday show Trump and other guests, including Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, addressing throngs of supporters waving flags and chanting "stop the steal."

Around 2 p.m., pro-Trump extremists breached the U.S. Capitol, forcing a delay in the constitutional process to affirm Joe Biden’s victory in the November election.