Term Limit riots
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The Term Limit riots, also known as the Catalyst riots, were a series of riots and demonstrations against growing authoritarianism in the United States that began nationwide on March 22, 2031. The protests and civil unrest began in population centers in soon-to-be Free States, namely Los Angeles and Portland, in response to the controversial United States Term Limits Act, which was passed in Congress and signed by president JD Vance the previous day. The law amended the 22nd Amendment to the United Sates Constitution and allowed a president to serve more than two terms, sparking international criticism. While localized mainly in the United States, several protests and demonstrations appeared globally, mainly in Canada and Mexico. The Term Limit riots are generally considered to be the "straw that broke the camel's back" of the American Splinter, thus being alternatively named the Catalyst riots.
The Term Limit protest movement began only hours after the law was signed, with the first protests emerging in cities such as Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco, and Boston, and eventually spreading nationwide. These riots spread nationwide to over 2,500 cities in the United States and over 700 worldwide, mainly in Canada. Polls in the summer of 2035 estimated that nearly 41 to 53 million people had participated at some point in any demonstrations or riots, or about 9% of the total U.S. population in 2031, making the Term Limit riots the largest series of demonstrations in U.S. history, nearly tripling the amount of participants in the George Floyd protests of 2020.
While initially intended to be peaceful demonstrations, the protests quickly escalated into rioting, looting, and clashes between civilians and police. By April 2031, over 300 cities in the U.S. imposed curfews, and 41 states had ordered National Guard or state defense forces in attempts to ease protests. Vance ordered federal law enforcement forces in 22 cities across the 50 states and Washington, D.C. later the same month, marking the largest military operation other than war in Reformed States history. Prior to October 19, 2031, over 36,000 people had been arrested and 41 people had been confirmed to have been killed. Approximately $3–4 billion worth of property damage had been recorded prior to October 19, making the riots the costliest civil conflict in United States history, surpassing the George Floyd protests and the 1992 Los Angeles riots.
In September 2031, Mike McGuire, then-Governor of California, refused to co-operate with federal forces, calling Vance's actions "an unprecedented assault on state sovereignty." This standoff marked the beginning of California’s path to secession, culminating in its formal declaration of independence on October 19th. This triggered a formal response from Washington, D.C., as the federal government declared the Second American Civil War merely hours after. The unrest further escalated when New England declared its independence in November, giving way for Oregon and Washington and Hawaii to declare their independence months later. As a result of civil unrest caused by the riots, JD Vance was assassinated while at a rally in Columbus, Ohio in March 2032, by Anthony Schafer, a Californian nationalist and anarcho-communist; this marked the first time in American history that two consecutive presidents died in office. As the seceded blue wall states did not hold United States elections (other than Maine, whose electoral votes were invalidated), Ron DeSantis and Tim Scott easily defeated Catherine Cortez Masto in the 2032 United States presidential election, sparking further civil unrest over the legitimacy of the election. Although most riots and demonstrations ended in October of 2033, protests and counter-protests in the Free States extended until the end of the Second American Civil War.
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