The board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts voted unanimously on Thursday to change the venue’s name to the “Trump-Kennedy Center.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced the renaming.
“I have just been informed that the highly respected Board of the Kennedy Center, some of the most successful people from all parts of the world, have just voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building,” Leavitt wrote on X.
“Not only from the standpoint of its reconstruction, but also financially, and its reputation,” she added. “Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future! The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur.”
Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-OH), who is an ex officio member of the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees, said the vote was not unanimous and that her input was not allowed.
“For the record. This was not unanimous,” she wrote on X. “I was muted on the call and not allowed to speak or voice my opposition to this move. Also for the record, this was not on the agenda.”
She later edited her statement to add a video, in which she said participants “were not allowed to voice their concerns who were online.” Beatty said she would not have voted in favor of the name change.
A spokesperson for Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), who is also an ex-officio member of the board, told the Washington Examiner that those specific members cannot vote. Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell also said ex officio members cannot cast a vote.
The board consists of 34 presidential appointees, a number of ex-officio members which include cabinet secretaries, congressional leadership, and others as well as emeritus members. Only appointees, which historically had been Republicans and Democrats but now mostly features GOP figures, can vote.
Trump restructured the board earlier this year, firing Biden appointed members.
It is unclear who is considered a voting member of the board. Several Democrats, including House and Senate Minority Leaders Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY), respectively, are trustees.
The name change is the first since 1964, when the then-National Cultural Center changed its name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. President Donald Trump was named as its chairman earlier this year.
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“The Kennedy Center Board of Trustees voted unanimously today to name the institution The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts,” Roma Daravi, the center’s vice president of public relations, told the Washington Examiner.
“The unanimous vote recognizes that the current Chairman saved the institution from financial ruin and physical destruction,” she added. “The new Trump Kennedy Center reflects the unequivocal bipartisan support for America’s cultural center for generations to come.”
There are questions about whether the name change can be enacted by the board or if Congress will have to approve the new name.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the Kennedy Center for comment but did not receive a response.
