the new york police department will deploy thousands of officers to protect the city on election day as voters go to the polls amid heightened political tensions and threats of a terrorist attack. <u+201c>they<u+2019>re going to see a lot of police, they<u+2019>re going to see a lot of uniforms, they<u+2019>re going to see a lot of marked cars,<u+201d> police commissioner james o<u+2019>neill said monday. <u+201c>new yorkers should feel good about [tuesday], that they<u+2019>re going to be in safe hands.<u+201d> nypd officials said they were on high alert after receiving information about a possible al qaeda attack aimed at disrupting the presidential election. the threat lacked specificity, officials said. over the weekend, islamic state called for attacks on the u.s. on election day, officials said. in a show of confidence monday, mayor bill de blasio and mr. o<u+2019>neill appeared together alongside nypd and secret service officials in times square. they said the city was accustomed to dealing with large events and was prepared to deal with possible terrorism, protests or voter intimidation. democratic presidential nominee hillary clinton and republican nominee donald trump are both slated to hold election-night events in manhattan. mrs. clinton<u+2019>s event is scheduled to be at the javits center on the far west side, and mr. trump<u+2019>s event is at the new york hilton midtown on sixth avenue. <u+201c>we have an obligation not only to the people of this city but to this country to make sure that tomorrow all through the day and particularly tomorrow night goes smoothly,<u+201d> said mr. de blasio, a democrat. <u+201c>new york city will never be intimidated.<u+201d> nypd officials said some 5,000 officers would be out on the streets tuesday, a force that will include heavy-weapons teams, counterterrorism units, bomb-sniffing dogs and hundreds of plainclothes officers looking for suspicious activity. they also said officers will be posted at polling sites and would respond to any possible incidents of voter suppression. officials said new yorkers can expect security measures to feel similar to those taken on new year<u+2019>s eve. john miller, the nypd<u+2019>s deputy commissioner for counterterrorism and intelligence, called the approach <u+201c>an all-out posture<u+201d> that has become <u+201c>part of the new normal for new york city.<u+201d> police officials said they had taken extra security measures because both major candidates were expected to be in new york city on tuesday night. the city will see extensive traffic closures. beginning tuesday morning, 34th street will be closed, as well as 11th avenue between 34th and 40th streets. the area surrounding trump tower on fifth avenue will be closed while mr. trump is in the building, as will the area surrounding the hilton. mr. o<u+2019>neill said keeping the city safe was a shared responsibility. <u+201c>if anyone sees something tomorrow that doesn<u+2019>t look right, doesn<u+2019>t feel right, let one of our officers know about it,<u+201d> he said. <u+201c>or call 911.<u+201d> write to mara gay at mara.gay@wsj.com
new york city ramps up security for election day - wsj
mara gay