Oswego City Rejects Proposal to Rename Lake Ontario

A port city in New York, located on the shores of what has been known for centuries as Lake Ontario, has declined President Trump’s proposal to rename the lake as ‘Lake America’. This city sits within a county that voted for Trump in the 2024 election.

Following unsuccessful trade talks with Canada, President Trump stated that the United States was ‘considering seriously’ the name change, expressing that ‘business with Ontario was no longer a priority’. Recently, the president issued an executive order directing the Interior Department to modify the lake’s name in the U.S. geographic naming system.

Polls indicate that most Americans are not in favor of altering the historic name. Similarly, Oswego County in New York, which Trump won with a vote of 62 percent to 38 percent in the presidential election, seems against the renaming. Many local lawmakers and residents have voiced frustration with the plan.

Oswego’s Mayor, Robert Corradino, a Republican, released a statement this week stating that the city’s administration does not support Trump’s order and finds no rationale for altering the current name. ‘Lake Ontario has had its name for hundreds of years’, the statement noted, emphasizing its historical, geographical, and cultural significance to surrounding communities.

Additionally, this week saw both Republicans and Democrats within the Oswego County Legislature progress a resolution against the ‘Lake America’ change. The resolution highlights the lake’s considerable historical and geographical significance, stressing the potential economic burden on taxpayers and businesses involved in any attempt to rename it.