PORTLAND - Protesters wearing gas masks and hoisting cardboard peace signs took to the streets of Portland, chanting "Not our president, not our war."

The demonstrators, who numbered about 200, were met by police in riot gear, who arrived on foot, on motorcycles, on bicycles and on horseback.

At least seven people were arrested late Wednesday, but there were no reports of serious injuries. Police squirted some protesters with pepper spray, said Sgt. Brian Schmautz, the Portland police spokesman.

The protesters called for an investigation into Bush's victory over Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry. It was one of several across the nation, sparked by Bush's re-election victory.

In Bellingham, Wash., a crowd of nearly 300 staged a sit-in at one intersection, snarling traffic. College students in St. Paul, Minn., held up signs, saying their voices had not been heard. And in Red Hook, N.Y., 12 Bard College students were arrested after 250 students gathered to claim Bush was not the legitimate winner.

In Portland, demonstrators held up homemade cardboard signs, including one which said: "Let's do what Kerry didn't: Revolt."

"I want to see democracy in America. I want all the votes scrutinized. We need U.N. inspectors to look at these results," said Cyrus Smith, 24.

Others wanted to let Bush know that they wouldn't quietly accept his policies.

"I'm not trying to challenge the vote. It's keeping things alive," said Jeremy Lambshead, 23.

"We're still here," he added. "You may have won the White House, you may have won the House, you may have won the Senate, but we're still here."

As police arrested one man, protesters yelled, "Police go home." Others pounded trash cans with sticks. Eighteen-year-old Christa Schmid wore a gag and carried a sign that said: "Patriot Act."

"I cried when the results came in," she said. "Now all I can do is just get out on the street."