Trump calls on New Mexico to rename itself 'New America'
President Donald Trump on Monday urged New Mexico to change its name to "New America," CNN, Fox News and KVIA reported. The state's governor, Michelle Lujan Grisham, rejected the idea. CNN reported that a president cannot legally rename a state, and the name is in the state constitution.
President Donald Trump on Monday called on New Mexico to change its name to "New America," CNN, Fox News and KVIA reported.
"New Mexico should immediately change its name to New America. We are not Mexico, we are the United States of America!" Trump wrote on Truth Social, according to CNN, Fox News and KVIA. He claimed, without evidence, that "home values and incomes would rise" with a new name, CNN reported. He also repeated unproven claims about rigged elections in the state, CNN and Fox News reported.
Trump posted the message shortly before leaving the White House for a midterm rally in Kansas, CNN reported. He lost New Mexico by 6 points in 2024, CNN reported.
Democratic Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham dismissed the idea Monday evening. "Let me repeat: New Mexico was New Mexico long before the United States existed and we'll be New Mexico forevermore," she wrote on X, CNN reported. Last month she said, "While the White House wastes time coloring on maps, Nuevo México is busy doing the work," Fox News reported.
Democratic Senator Ben Ray Luján also pushed back. "We are New Mexicans. We're proud of our name, proud of our home, and we're keeping both. Long after Donald Trump is out of office, we'll still be New Mexico," he said, according to KVIA and CNN.
Trump has floated the idea before, CNN, Fox News and KVIA reported. In September, he posted a map of the state with "Mexico" crossed out and "America" written below it, which the White House reposted, CNN reported.
A president can rename geographic features such as bodies of water for federal use but has no constitutional power to rename a state, CNN reported. That would have to happen within the state, CNN reported. New Mexico's constitution states, "The name of this state is New Mexico," Fox News reported. Trump signed an order in August to rename Lake Ontario "Lake America," and earlier renamed the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America," CNN and Fox News reported.
What we know: Trump urged New Mexico to rename itself, and state Democratic leaders rejected the idea.
What we don't: Whether Trump or his allies will try any formal step, since the name is set in the state constitution.
Where outlets agree CNN, Fox News and KVIA report that Trump called on New Mexico to rename itself "New America" in a Truth Social post on Monday.
Where they differ The outlets cited here report the same key facts so far.