UNION GAP — Yakima Valley residents joined others around the country Saturday to protest what they see as the Trump administration’s autocratic actions.
About 2,500 people gathered at the intersection of Main Street and Valley Mall Boulevard to participate in the third “No Kings” rally.
Thousands of people protest the presidency of Donald Trump at the intersection of Main Street and Valley Mall Boulevard as part of nationwide “No Kings” demonstrations Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Union Gap, Wash.
Evan Abell / Yakima Herald-Republic
The event was organized by Yakima Indivisible, a pro-democracy group that organized the two previous rallies by the Valley Mall. The earlier protests were June 14 and Oct. 18, 2025.
While there were some people with signs using obscenities — and a mock guillotine — to register their opposition to the Trump administration’s policies, Scott Dolquist, who chairs Yakima Indivisible’s steering committee, said those groups were not affiliated with Yakima Indivisible.
Dolquist, a retired educator, said the group’s goal is to seek common ground with people on both sides of a widening political divide. Among the signs Yakima Indivisible supporters carried were those highlighting people who have died as a result of Trump’s immigration crackdown, as well as Trump ignoring constitutional limits on presidential power.
Thousands of people protest the presidency of Donald Trump at the intersection of Main Street and Valley Mall Boulevard as part of nationwide “No Kings” demonstrations Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Union Gap, Wash.
Evan Abell / Yakima Herald-Republic
Some people held signs referencing the U.S. Constitution and highlighting those killed as result of actions by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Others held placards looking like highway signs with the number “25” on them, a reference to calls for Trump’s cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment and remove him from office on grounds that he is no longer mentally competent to serve as president.
Another sign with Trump’s picture read “Iran from the Epstein files,” a reference to the Iran war that some say was waged to distract the public from the administration’s reluctance to release information on convicted sex-trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and his ties to Trump.
Dolquist said the signs reflect the issues people are passionate about with Trump’s administration, including the war, the economy and immigration.
For Cindy Olivas, preserving democracy is a vital issue. Olivas, president of the League of Women Voters of Yakima County, said her goal was not to just get people registered to vote, but understanding what they are voting for, and that their votes can make a difference.
Jack McEntire, a former vice chair of the Yakima County Democratic Party, said it was important for him to be out on the street protesting even if it meant that his feet were going to be hurting for the next couple days.
McEntire carried a sign comparing Trump to the fictitious President Camacho in the movie “Idiocracy,” a dark comedy about a future dystopian, anti-intellectual America where, among other things, the government has replaced water with a sports drink to irrigate crops.
McEntire said Trump’s actions could likely doom Republicans at the ballot box.
“What he has done is destroy the image of the Republican Party,” McEntire said.