UTICA, N.Y. -- Hundreds of people flooded the streets of Utica Monday as Donald Trump made his first visit to Upstate New York as president, turning the city into a roiling political battleground for more than three hours.

Protesters jammed city sidewalks for more than three blocks outside the Doubletree Hotel Utica, where Trump was headlining a fundraiser for U.S. Rep. Claudia Tenney.

Anti-Trump demonstrators filled the south side of the street while the president's supporters gathered near the hotel on the north side. Traffic on Genesee Street slowed to a crawl as activists, cops and media filled the corridor.

Divided by four lanes of traffic, the opposing sides spent hours trading chants, cheers and occasional insults. That left cars pinned between two lines of dueling demonstrators.

Stuck in sluggish traffic, drivers showed support for one side or another. Some shouted vulgarities about Trump, others hurled insults at his protesters. A pair of motorcyclists circled the block with giant Trump flags, revving their engines to drown out protesters.

The anti-Trump demonstrators outside greatly outnumbered the supporters. There appeared to be at least 500 protesters, compared to about 100 Trump supporters. Cops on the street weren't able to provide a crowd estimate.

The result was a raucous scene with non-stop horns honking and chants like "Lock him up!" filling the air. Local police did their best to manage traffic and pedestrians, and to avoid any serious confrontation.

Outside the state office building down the street from the fundraiser, activists organized an official event to speak against Trump and Tenney. Indivisible Mohawk Valley and the healthcare workers union, 1199 SEIU, were among the groups leading the event. It featured an inflatable chicken with Trump's likeness and a cardboard cut-out of Tenney covered in corporate logos.

People sported signs with slogans denouncing Trump, Tenney and supporting Tenney's opponent, Anthony Brindisi. One man wore a costume depicting Trump as a baby. Another wore a Tyrannosaurs Rex costume. One man walked around with a red GOP sign speaking in a Russian accent, saying "Trump loves Putin," among other things.

Volunteers with Brindisi's congressional campaign wandered the crowd with clipboards, asking for people's email addresses and whether they'd like to aid the campaign. Others registered people to vote.

Jen DeWeerth helped organize that event. She said it was intended to hold Tenney accountable to the people, and to give regular people a chance to share how they've been hurt by Republican votes on a tax bill and limits on refugees.

Daniel Jezer, Rabbi emeritus of Congregation Beth Solom-Chevra Shas and an adjunct professor at Le Moyne College, said he got stuck behind the President's motorcade on the Thruway during their drive into Utica.

Jezer ran through the 10 Commandments, denouncing Trump throughout his speech.

"Trump is not only a disaster," Jezer said in a quiet moment afterward, "he betrayed the values of this country. Claudia Tenney is right along with him. They're a great danger to this country."

Jezer told the crowd Trump has told more than 4,000 lies since taking office, later explaining he got the figure from a Washington Post fact-checking database.

His wife Rhea, an environmental activist, spoke at the protest, saying Trump has declared war on air, water, food and shelter.

"We'll stop this ugly, demented person from changing our environment," Rhea told the crowd.

Down the street, about 100 Trump supporters filled the sidewalk outside the hotel. Many waved American flags and wore gear stamped with Trump's 2016 campaign slogan, "Make America Great Again."

They crowded around police barricades to see the president enter the hotel. Most saw only glimpses of his motorcade as it arrived around 4:50 p.m.

Rebecca Sklaney and Howard Griffith drove together from Syracuse Sunday night to be in Utica for Trump's event. They said they got here early to scope out the area, including driving by Griffiss Air Force Base in Rome.

Griffith described himself as a hardcore Trump fan who hates Gov. Andrew Cuomo. He held an "Indict Cuomo" sign outside the event. Scores of those signs were distributed among Trump's supporters.

"New York is just getting so crazy," Griffith said.

At one point, Trump supporters started chanting, "USA! USA!" The anti-Trump people joined in. The two groups stood across the intersection from one another, both shouting the same phrase at the other.

It quickly faded, and they went back to other chants and shouts.

Reporter Nate Mink contributed to this story.