Kennedy Center Board Votes to Restore Trump Name and Close for Renovations

The board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts voted to restore President Donald Trump’s name to the Washington landmark’s facade and proceed with a two-year closure for building renovations, according to reports from CBC, Al Jazeera, NBC News, and The Guardian.

The latest board decisions come as legal battles surrounding the facility continue to unfold in federal courts. According to CNBC, a three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected an appeal from Trump and the board on July 8, 2026, upholding a lower court order that removed Trump’s name from the venue in June 2026.

Legal Battles Over the Kennedy Center Name

The appeals court panel, consisting of Judges Gregory Katsas, Patricia Millett, and Robert Wilkins, ruled that Trump and the board failed to demonstrate they would suffer irreparable injury without the name restored during the appeal process. The court also rejected claims that fundraising efforts by a newly formed entity called The Trump Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Foundation would be irreparably harmed.

According to CNBC, the legal dispute originated when District Court Judge Christopher Cooper ruled on May 29, 2026, that Congress alone has the authority to name the institution.

Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it,
Judge Cooper wrote in his May 29, 2026, order, noting that the venue’s organic statute specifies it is dedicated to President [John] Kennedy.

Following that ruling, a tarp was placed over the building name on the facility’s facade to comply with the directive. The board had originally added Trump’s name to the venue in December, roughly ten months after Trump removed several trustees and appointed himself as a trustee and board chair.

Congressional Response and Next Steps

Rep. Joyce Beatty, an Ohio Democrat and ex officio member of the Kennedy Center board, filed the initial lawsuit challenging the renaming. Reacting to the July 8, 2026, appeals court decision, Beatty issued a statement welcoming the ruling.

Today’s ruling again affirms that this administration’s efforts to rename the Kennedy Center were unlawful. His name no longer desecrates this sacred memorial, which belongs to the American people. Now it is time for the Trump administration to accept this, comply with the law, and take the tarps down,
Beatty stated.

Despite the ongoing federal court challenges regarding the building’s exterior signage, the board’s recent vote pushes forward with both the restoration of the naming designation and the scheduled two-year facility closure for major renovations. The Department of Justice is representing Trump and the board in the ongoing litigation before the D.C. Circuit.