RICHMOND, Va. (AP) – Virginia’s capital city is bracing for the expected arrival of thousands of gun-rights activists and other groups that have vowed to descend on Richmond to protest Democrats’ plans to pass gun-control legislation.

Citing credible threats of violence, Gov. Ralph Northam declared a temporary state of emergency days ahead of Monday’s rally, banning all weapons including guns from Capitol Square, where the event was set to be held.

Militia groups and white supremacists were among those expected to mix with gun-rights activists, raising fears that the state could again see the type violence that exploded in Charlottesville in 2017.

State officials and U.S. hate-monitoring groups are warning about the potential for violence ahead of a gun-rights rally in Virginia that’s expected to draw a mix of militias, firearms advocates and white supremacists to Richmond.

The Southern Poverty Law Center says that threats of violence have been “rampant” online among anti-government and far-right groups.