Judge blocks Trump name on Kennedy Center as board votes to close venue for two years

A US judge has ruled that Donald Trump's name must remain off the Kennedy Center building, in the latest turn in a dispute over the future of the performing arts institution in Washington. The decision came just before the centre's board voted to close the venue for two years to carry out renovations. The board is chaired by Trump and includes cabinet members and allies.

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The judge's written order came less than an hour before the board meeting. In May, the same judge had ordered the removal of Trump's name and blocked a temporary closure for proposed renovations. The board later approved a resolution in August calling for the inscription "Renovated and Restored by President Donald J.

Trump" to be added to the venue. Trump also said the board had voted almost unanimously to close the centre "for safety reasons" and begin reconstruction. Trump said the closure would take effect immediately, but that renovations could not begin until the court ruled on the board's approved name.

He said the Department of Justice would seek an expedited appeal and that he would take the case to the Supreme Court if the ruling was negative. He also said he had raised $17m for the centre to keep it afloat. In August, the board also approved a plan to rename the campus the "President Donald J.

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Trump Plaza" if $100m was raised for the renovations. The dispute matters because the Kennedy Center was established by Congress as a memorial to President John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963.

Critics of the changes argue that any alteration to the memorial should require congressional approval, while Trump has argued that he has the authority to act. The legal fight has therefore become a test of how far a president and a reconstituted board can reshape a national cultural institution. The latest ruling follows a series of changes made after Trump replaced several trustees on the board in February 2025 and became the centre's chairman.

In December, the board decided to rename the institution and new lettering bearing Trump's full name was affixed to the front portico the following day. The changes were followed by cancellations by artists booked at the venue and a drop in ticket sales, according to the report. What remains unclear is how quickly the closure will proceed in practice, whether the appeal will alter the judge's order, and how the dispute over the building's name will be resolved.

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