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Some people streamed in on buses from faraway cities. Others drove cars through the night from places like Indianapolis and Fredericksburg, Texas, logging hundreds of miles and leaning on coffee and Red Bull. Still others came from only a few counties over, but carrying the same vehement message as the rest: Leave gun laws alone. Thousands of people descended on Richmond, the capital of Virginia, on Monday to show support for the rights of gun owners as a push for gun control measures by that state’s newly empowered Democrats has inserted Virginia into a nationwide debate over gun violence and the Second Amendment. (Williams, Tavernise, Kanno-Youngs, and Mervosh, 1/20)

Tens of thousands of gun-rights activists from around the country rallied peacefully at the Virginia Capitol on Monday to protest plans by the state's Democratic leadership to pass gun-control legislation — a move that has become a key flash point in the national debate over gun violence. The size of the crowd and the expected participation of white supremacists and fringe militia groups raised fears that the state could see a repeat of the violence that exploded in 2017 in Charlottesville. (Suderman and Rankin, 1/20)

Intelligence from law enforcement about outside threats had put Virginia officials on edge and led to a massive police presence. The crackdown also made Northam (D) a symbol of the country’s cultural and political divide — as evidenced by harsh signs Monday depicting him as a “tyrant,” “radical Ralph” and photoshopped into a Nazi uniform. “Democrats in the state are demonstrating . . . unadulterated power without authority,” Erich Pratt, senior vice president of Gun Owners of America, thundered in Capitol Square. “No one listening to my voice should ever . . . vote for the party of gun control, the party of Nancy Pelosi, Charles Schumer,” he said, interrupted by boos at the names of the Democratic leaders. (Schneider, Vozzella, Sullivan and Miller, 1/20)

It was supposed to be a night of celebration and local pride in Kansas City, Mo. The Chiefs had just clinched a spot in the Super Bowl, its first in a half century. Arrowhead Stadium had been full of fans, and local bars were packed. But late Sunday night, the city found itself confronting yet another episode of what the mayor called an epidemic of gun violence. (Hauser and Zraick, 1/20)

Authorities described “a chaotic scene” as hundreds fled the venue by foot and in cars, the violence shattering the city’s celebration of its football team, the Kansas City Chiefs, who had just advanced to the Super Bowl in what was “an exciting night, a euphoric night,” Mayor Quinton Lucas said. “Last night was a night many people in Kansas City have been dreaming of for 50 years,” Lucas said at the news conference. “This is very disappointing for us. It’s heartbreaking.” (Brice-Saddler and Thebault, 1/20)