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Fact Check: Did 10M people sign a petition to restore Trump's name to the Kennedy Center?

A post alleged that Karoline Leavitt described the petition as a record-breaking federal document and called it 'the will of the American people'

BY SAURAV SURESH

PUBLISHED 1 HOUR AGO

A viral social media post claimed that more than 10 million people had signed a petition demanding that President Donald Trump’s name be restored to the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts after it was removed from the building (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON, DC: Following the removal of President Donald Trump’s name from the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, a rumor began circulating on social media platforms claiming that petitions have been filed to put Trump’s name back on the building, sparking concerns and speculations.

Let us analyze the origins of the claim and fact-check it.

Claim: Petition to put back Donald Trump's name on Kennedy Center

The viral rumor claimed that the petition is now more than 10 million signatures (America's Last Line of Defense/Facebook)

The viral rumor claims that the petition to restore President Trump's name to the Kennedy Center has reached a historic milestone.

"There are now more than 10 million signatures," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt allegedly told reporters, "which breaks the all-time record for signatures on a federal document by registered voters."

According to the post, Leavitt further said, unlike other petitions, this one won't be covered in illegals trying to get something for free. "It's the will of the American people."

Fact Check: The claim originated from a parody account

Workers install Donald J. Trump above the current signage on the Kennedy Center on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) — Workers install Donald J. Trump above the current signage on the Kennedy Center on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in Washington (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

The claim, however, is false, as there is no evidence of any petitions filed to put Trump's name back on the historic building. There are also no records of Leavitt making such a statement.

A search on Google for the keywords ‘petition to put back Trump’s name of Kennedy Center,’ ‘ten million signatures to put back Trump’s name,’ yielded no relevant results by prominent news media outlets, which, if true, would have been reported widely, sparking a nationwide debate.

The post was accompanied by a picture of the Kennedy Center, and a closer look at it reveals an overlay text on the top left corner stating, ‘Nothing on this page is real.’ Hence, it is revealed that the claim was posted from a parody account.

Donald Trump's name removed from Kennedy Center following a court order

A worker removes a letter from President Donald Trump's name from the wall of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, Saturday, June 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen) — A worker removes a letter from President Donald Trump's name from the wall of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, Saturday, June 13, 2026 (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

The claim surfaced after the Kennedy Center on Saturday, June 13, informed the judge that Trump’s name had been removed from the building and the cultural center’s website after the court had given the Trump administration a deadline of Friday to do so.

In a decisive ruling this month, a federal court ordered the immediate removal of President Donald J Trump's name from the building.

Workers started removing Trump’s name from the facade of the building early Saturday, six months after Trump's name was added on December 19, 2025, after a hand-picked board of trustees voted to rebrand the venue.