The National Mall Looked Relatively Empty For Donald Trump's Inauguration

Aerial shots of the National Mall during President Donald Trumps inauguration Friday showed relatively sparse crowds.Crowd estimates for the ceremony have yet to be released, but security had planned for a crowd of about 800,000 to 900,000 people.Photos taken just prior to the swearing-in ceremony showed large portions of tarp exposed, with almost no one standing near the Washington Monument.View of the Mall at 1115 on @CBSNews pic.twitter.com/EO5gOTSasq Brian Steinberg (@bristei) January 20, 2017 Reuters captured a shot while the ceremony was underway:The attendance pales in comparison to former President Barack Obamas first inauguration in 2009, which drew approximately 1.8 million people to the Mall. However, Obamas inauguration was an anomaly, due to the historic nature of the country having elected its first black president and the support he received from younger voters.Heres what the crowds looked like on Obamas first inauguration:Ridership of Washingtons Metro on Friday was also comparable to the day of George W. Bushs second inauguration, but less than both Obama inaugurations.Metro Ridership: As of 11am, 193k trips taken so far today. (11am 1/20/13 = 317k, 11am 1/20/09 = 513k, 11am 1/20/05 = 197k) #wmata Metro (@wmata) January 20, 2017 Most other modern inaugurations have had numbers similar to Trumps. Bushs first inauguration drew about 300,000 people, while attendance at his second inauguration was estimated around 400,000. Bill Clinton drew 800,000 at his first inauguration in 1993 and 250,000 at his second.Democratic presidents also have a built-in crowd advantage in Washington, D.C., and its surrounding suburbs ' the region is largely populated by Democratic voters.At least some people trying to attend Trumps inauguration apparently were stuck in line as the ceremony got underway.A huge number of people, mostly Trump supporters, still stuck in the no ticket line as Trump takes the stage. pic.twitter.com/nM8riwvy0T Arthur Delaney (@ArthurDelaneyHP) January 20, 2017 -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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