PITTSBURGH — It’s all hands on deck for police agencies all over Allegheny County as Monday and Tuesday will be two of the busiest days Downtown Pittsburgh has seen.
“There will be a lot of cooks in the kitchen to make sure everyone is safe and smooth,” Abigail Gardner, Allegheny County spokesperson, said.
On Monday, Vice President Kamala Harris will have a rally at Point State Park, where we saw crews already setting up the stage and across town, former President Donald Trump will have a rally at PPG Paints Arena.
[11/2/24 UPDATE: The upcoming Kamala Harris rally was originally scheduled to be held at Point State Park. Sources have since told Channel 11 it will be relocated. The new location has not been announced at this time.]
“It just really goes to show how important Pennsylvania and Pittsburgh is for the election,” voter Monica Chen said.
According to a Pittsburgh police spokesperson, the bureau works in close coordination with the Secret Service to keep candidates and the public safe.
Intel detectives have a detailed operations plan in place.
“Part of being a big county in a swing state, I think we’ve had 20 visits from both campaigns, their principles, and every single time they come to town, that means police officers, EMS, Secret Service all have to coordinate,” Gardner said.
If you’re trying to get around the city on Monday, you may hit some traffic.
“I would say if you do come downtown not for a rally on Monday, probably be prepared for some traffic. Probably a lot of people will be here and a lot of roads will be shut down,” Gardner said.
As for polling places — the sheriff has divided the county into four zones and has assigned 16 deputies to election detail.
And in the county warehouse, county police will have a presence inside and outside of the building.
“It takes a lot of coordination between Secret Service, EMS, county police, city police,” Gardner said.
On Monday, we will be hearing from the public safety director and acting police chief to discuss the specifics of the security plan.
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