Donald Trump's swearing-in ceremony to be moved indoors due to cold weather
The decision means the 250,000 people who had tickets to view the inauguration outside will no longer be able to do so - with a live viewing now taking place at the nearby Capital One Arena.
Friday 17 January 2025 19:08, UK
Donald Trump's swearing-in ceremony is to be moved indoors due to cold weather forecast for Washington DC on Monday.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, the US president-elect said he will now take the oath of office inside the Capitol Rotunda building, where dignitaries and guests will gather and prayers and other speeches will also be delivered.
It means the roughly 250,000 people who had tickets to watch the inauguration from around the Capitol grounds will no longer be able to do so.
Thousands more were expected to be in general admission areas or to line the route from the Capitol Building to the White House.
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Mr Trump said the Capital One Arena in Washington will open for a live viewing of his swearing-in ceremony and to host the Presidential Parade.
"I will join the crowd at Capital One, after my swearing-in," he said.
Outlining the reasons for the swearing-in ceremony being moved indoors, he wrote in his Truth Social post: "The weather forecast for Washington DC, with the wind chill factor, could take temperatures into severe record lows.
"There is an Arctic blast sweeping the country. I don't want to see people hurt, or injured, in any way.
"It is dangerous conditions for the tens of thousands of law enforcement, first responders, police K9s and even horses, and hundreds of thousands of supporters that will be outside for many hours on the 20th.
"In any event, if you decide to come, dress warmly."
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Mr Trump wrote that all other events related to his inauguration will "remain the same", including the Victory Rally at the Capital One Arena on Sunday and all three Inaugural Balls on Monday evening.
He added: "Everyone will be safe, everyone will be happy, and we will, together, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
A spokesperson for the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) said in a statement that it will "honour the request of the President-elect and his Presidential Inaugural Committee to move the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies inside the US Capitol to the Rotunda".
The last time a swearing-in ceremony was held indoors was Ronald Reagan's second inauguration in 1985. Monday's forecast suggests the lowest inauguration day temperatures since that day.
The National Weather Service is predicting the temperature to be around -6C at noon during the swearing-in, the coldest since Mr Reagan's second inauguration saw temperatures plunge to -14C.
Barack Obama's 2009 swearing-in was -2C. Adding to the bite, the wind is forecast to be 30-35mph.
In the days after his first inauguration in 2017, Mr Trump accused the media of lying about the turnout at the ceremony.
The president insisted that crowds at the event stretched back all the way to the Washington Monument, even though photographs and footage from the scene showed large, empty spaces around the landmark.
His then press secretary Sean Spicer went one further during a heated White House briefing, describing it as "the largest audience ever to witness an inauguration, period".
Although the National Park Service no longer provides estimates of crowds at inaugurations, photographic evidence shows substantially more people turned out for Mr Obama's ceremony in 2009.