President-elect Donald Trump will take his oath of office inside the U.S. Capitol Rotunda at 12 p.m. EST on Monday. Trump is the second president to move his inauguration indoors to the Rotunda, from the West Front of the Capitol, due to a forecast of frigid weather.
"I have ordered the Inauguration Address, in addition to prayers and other speeches, to be delivered in the United States Capitol Rotunda, as was used by Ronald Reagan in 1985, also because of very cold weather," Trump posted Friday.
Temperatures will reach a high of about 24 degrees Monday with wind gusts as high as 31 mph, according to National Weather Service.
Crews — who spent four months building the inaugural and presidential parade platforms outside — have outfitted the Rotunda and Capitol One Arena to host Trump's inauguration events. Nearly a quarter million people had tickets for Trump's outdoor inauguration, many of whom will not be able to attend the limited capacity indoor events.
"This will be a very beautiful experience for all, and especially for the large TV audience!" Trump posted Friday.
How to watch the inauguration
NPR News will broadcast live special coverage of Trump's inauguration starting at 11 a.m. EST on NPR.org and YouTube.
Other streaming options include the official inaugural committee livestream and C-SPAN.org.
All major network and cable news television outlets will broadcast the inauguration. These programs can also be viewed on subscription-based streaming platforms, such as YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV. Many news networks — such as CBS News, NBC News and ABC News — will air their coverage online.
MSNBC's inauguration coverage will air on its YouTube channel.
CNN and Fox News will also stream their coverage, but it requires a paid subscription.
Who's going to the inauguration
With the inauguration ceremony taking place in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda — instead of the West Front — space is limited and the guest list is in flux.
The inaugural platform on the West Front is more than 10,000 square feet and can hold around 1,600 people, according to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. The Capitol Rotunda is smaller — coming in at just over 7,000 square feet — and can only fit around 750 people, according to a source familiar with the planning who was not authorized to disclose the matter.
According to the JCCIC, the inaugural platform is usually reserved for the president and vice president and their families; the president-elect and vice president-elect and their families; the chief justice and associate justices of the Supreme Court; former presidents; the diplomatic corps; cabinet members and nominees; members of Congress; governors; the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and other guests.
Despite the space constraints, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman will all attend the rotunda inauguration, according to a source familiar with the planning who was not authorized to disclose the matter.
Notably, the vice president of the People's Republic of China, Han Zheng, will also attend the rotunda ceremony, according to the Trump transition team.
Prayer, Parade and Inaugural balls
While Trump's inauguration is constitutionally mandated to occur at 12 p.m. EST on Monday, the entire day is full of inaugural events, traditions and ceremonies.
The day starts at St. John's Episcopal Church with a morning prayer service — a 92-year-old tradition. Trump, Vice President-elect JD Vance and a small group of others will pray with Rev. Robert Fisher at the small, yellow church just across the street from Lafayette Square.
Trump will then have tea with President Biden at the White House before leaving for the U.S. Capitol.
Following his swearing-in, Trump will give his inaugural address inside the Rotunda.
Trump will then leave the U.S. Capitol and head to Capital One Arena for his indoor "Presidential Parade" starting at 3 p.m. EST.
The evening ends with three inaugural balls: Commander in Chief Ball, Liberty Inaugural Ball and Starlight Ball. Trump will attend and speak at each one.
Which artists are performing
Throughout the day's events, several well-known artists will perform.
Country music star Carrie Underwood will sign "America the Beautiful" during the swearing-in ceremony.
"I love our country and am honored to have been asked to sing at the Inauguration and to be a small part of this historic event," Underwood said in a statement provided to NPR.
Classical tenor Christopher Macchio — who performed at the Republican National Convention and Trump's Madison Square Garden rally — will perform the national anthem during the swearing-in ceremony.
Lee Greenwood, whose song "I.O.U." won a Grammy for best vocal country performance, will also perform at the rotunda ceremony.
Monday evening, at The Liberty Ball, country singer-songwriter Jason Aldean, disco band Village People, and rapper and singer Nelly will all perform.
Country music band Rascal Flatts and singer Parker McCollum will serenade attendees of The Commander-in Chief Ball.
Finally, singer songwriter Gavin DeGraw will perform at the Starlight Ball.
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