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As CNN previously reported, the immediate perimeters around the White House have already been largely blocked off to the public this year for a range of reasons, from construction on the White House gate, to protests and looting that occurred in downtown Washington in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May.
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Washington, DC, Metro Police Chief Peter Newsham warned the District's City Council last month there was wide expectation of some type of civil unrest following the election. And many businesses in the downtown DC area in the proximity of the White House have boarded up doors and windows in the last couple of days in anticipation of possible protests.
During this past summer, some businesses saw their windows smashed and other property damaged by protesters.
But DC Metro police have been preparing its officers for well over a year, as it does ahead of every general election, ensuring that they are prepared to handle everything from civil disturbance to crowd control to potential disruptions to metro transit, Patrick Burke, executive director of the Washington, DC, Police Foundation,
previously told CNN.
Police have also been working with intelligence officials to ensure the security of Washington, DC's airspace in the event of an attack from above, Burke added, as they routinely do when preparing for moments of heightened anxiety.
"If there's no winner, you will see significant deployments of officers at all levels across the capital," said Burke. "Officers will get cancellations of days off, extensions of shifts and full deployments of officers across the city."
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