A Capitol Police intelligence assessment obtained by ABC News warns of an increased threat to government officials and election-related websites after the 2024 presidential election.

The report highlights the “likelihood of violence and civil unrest” surrounding the 2025 electoral vote certification process and presidential inauguration.

Released earlier this month, the report states that while there were fewer threats against members of Congress in 2024 than in 2020, threats increased significantly after Election Day four years ago, a trend that Capitol Police anticipate will continue. repeat in 2024.

The report adds that heightened rhetoric on social media “may suggest an environment conducive to politically motivated violence in the wake of the US presidential election.”

Capitol Police are expecting demonstrations targeting the election certification process and say a group of activists “with a history of large-scale demonstrations involving illegal activity plan to protest the Inauguration regardless of the outcome.”

They also expect protests related to Israel’s ongoing war, noting that the groups are “almost certain to target the Inauguration.”

Their decision to target the inauguration is regardless of the outcome of the election. A group has already applied for an Inauguration Day pass in the security perimeter, but the request will be denied.

However, protests are now being planned for January 6, the day the electoral vote is certified.

Capitol Police have reported an increase in social media posts claiming the election will be “stolen.”

They noted that efforts by foreign influence to spread conspiracies to undermine, manipulate and alter confidence in the electoral process “could exacerbate existing political tensions”.

Russia remains the main foreign threat, although Iran has also sought to exacerbate tensions over the conflict in Israel, according to the assessment.

The report points out that threat actors view vote certification and the inauguration as “their last opportunities to influence election results through violence.”

Capitol Police’s intelligence assessment warns that some threats “remain unknown,” particularly that of “lone actor violence.”

“The motives of some recent aggressors are not entirely coherent or remain unknown, highlighting the difficulty of predicting the violence of a lone actor,” the report notes.

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