Thousands of Trump supporters flocked to their nearest bodies of water to take part in massive boat parades Saturday, with those in Florida trying to break a Guinness World Record while they were at it.
Trump flotillas – dubbed ‘Trumptillas’ – have been increasing around the country over the last few months as a way to rally for the president’s 2020 campaign while also practicing social distancing during the coronavirus pandemic.
On Saturday, large-scale flotillas popped up in Florida, New Jersey, Alabama and Delaware, drawing thousands of marine-friendly Trump supporters, as well as protesters.
Trump supporters took to the water Saturday for a series of boat parade rallies held in various states. The Delware ‘Trumptilla’ is pictured here
Delaware’s Trumptilla boaters (pictured) were also accompanied by some Trump supporters using canoes, kayaks, and rafts
Boaters near Clearwater, Florida, attempted to set a new Guinness World Record by having the largest ever boat parade – a record set in Malaysia in 2014.
The event’s organizers, coffee shop Conservative Grounds, said that they needed more than 1,180 boats to break the record and called it the ‘MOAB… Mother of all Boat Parades.’
Although it’s unclear exactly how many boats participated in the parade, one of the event’s organizers, Cliff Gehart, told FOX 13 that more than 1,600 people had paid and registered to participate in the parade, which started at 10am Saturday.
He said that boaters had traveled to Clearwater from places including Orlando, West Palm Beach and South Carolina – ‘all over the place to represent Trump and to support his effort.’
Gehart estimated that nearly 2,000 boats had joined the parade, but the actual number will be determined by Guinness officials after they review footage of the event.
Trump supporters are pictured here during the Trumptilla on New Jersey’s Lake Hopatcong
More than 125 boats were said to have participated in the New Jersey boat parade on Lake Hoptacong (pictured), which also attracted more than two dozen counterprotesters.
Landlubbing Trump supports lined up on a bridge on Lake Hoptacong to show their support
Counter protesters also showed up at Lake Hoptacong (pictured) Saturday, waving Biden 2020 flags and waving anti-hate flags
In Clearwater, Florida, an estimated 2,000 boats full of Trump supporters showed up (pictured) in an attempt to break a Guinness World Record for boat parades set in 2014
Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, now the National Co-chair of Women for Trump, told Fox News that those participating in the parade were the ‘not-so-silent majority, and this is what’s going to get the president re-elected.’
Bondi, whose hometown is Clearwater, added that ‘These are families on every single boat, and they are not scared to be out there supporting President Trump and his great agenda.’
The parade’s route began at Pier 60 on Clearwater Beach and then headed south through the Pinellas Intercoastal Waterway, before ending in the Madeira Beach area, CBS Tampa Bay reported, noting that boats only needed to be at the Welch Causeway crossing to be counted in the Guinness record attempt.
Trump supporters shared phots of themselves on the potentially world record-breaking boat parade in Clearwater Saturday morning
Florida’s Trumptilla (pictured) featured boaters from as far away as South Carolina, event organizers said, adding that 1,600 people had paid and registered ahead of time
An aerial view showing the number of Trumptilla boaters who turned out in Clearwater, Florida
Another boat parade was held in Alabama Saturday afternoon, sponsored by a group called Turn Alabama RED.
The parade started at 1pm at Sportsman Marina in Orange Beach, Alabama. According to a Facebook event page, 233 people said that they attended the parade.
Further north, in Delaware, another Trumptilla took place on Alum Creek, organized by the Delaware County Republican Party, which shared video of motorboats zooming through the water.
‘The Trump Train was out in force at Alum Creek today!’ the group wrote on Facebook, with Facebook users noting that it looked like a ‘good turnout.’
ABC 6 reported that dozens of boaters were on the water participating in the parade, which also allowed people to use canoes, kayaks, and rafts.
And, in New Jersey, more than 125 boats were said to have joined the Trump boat parade held on Lake Hopatcong, the state’s largest lake on Saturday afternoon.
The parade – which had been rescheduled due to weather in June – featured boaters who honked their horns and waved Trump 2020 and Trump Train flags, as well as trotting out Trump-themed pool floats, swimming suits, yellow wigs and cardboard cutouts, according to the Daily Record.
Dozens of landlubbers, meanwhile, were spotted on a bridge, chanting ‘four more years’ and ‘all lives matter.’
Counter-protesters from the area also attended the event to make their viewpoint known.
Brothers Matthew and Noah Steinbaum, who live in Lake Hopatcong, brought more than two dozen people with them to protest the Trumptilla under the ‘No Hate on Our Lake’ banner.
While waving a Biden flag and sitting on a motorboat, one of the Steinbaum brothers yelled: ‘(The Democrats) are here to let the community know we have a place here.’ Other protesters were heard chanting ‘Hey hey, ho ho, Donald Trump has got to go.’