Trump shares map proposing to rename New Mexico as "New America"

President Donald Trump posted an image on social media that replaced the word "Mexico" on a map of New Mexico with "America," implying a rename to "New America." The White House reposted the graphic on September 6, during the Labor Day weekend.

Democratic leaders in the state responded sharply. Governor candidate Deb Haaland wrote on X, "You can’t be serious. New Mexico is not for renaming. Not up for sale. My promise: I’ll always stand up for what makes New Mexico, New Mexico." U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez added, "You don’t get to erase New Mexico. Not our name. Not our history. Not our culture. The President may want to call us 'New America,' but we know who we are."

The map had first appeared on September 1 on the parody X account Daily Noud, which labeled the image as fake and noted it falsely claimed Trump had signed an executive order to rename the state. Similar versions circulated on other platforms, and fact-checking organization Snopes identified the post as a parody.

New Mexico’s name, derived from the 16th-century Spanish term "Nuevo México," predates the United States and was retained when the territory became the 47th state in 1912. The recent post follows previous instances in which Trump suggested renaming geographic features, such as the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Ontario, to "America" variants.

Polls show the president’s overall approval rating at 36%, with critics suggesting the renaming theme serves as a distraction from broader policy issues.