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The U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of a bill to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America on Thursday (May 8). The bill, led by Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene from Georgia, follows an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in January, which directed the Interior Department to initiate the name change.
The bill aims to solidify the name change into federal law, making it more difficult for future administrations to reverse. House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana emphasized the importance of moving the change through the legislative process, stating, "Executive orders can be undone and overwritten, and that’s why we have to move it through the legislative process."
While the bill passed the House, its future in the Senate remains uncertain. Republicans do not have enough seats to overcome a filibuster, and all Democrats are expected to oppose the measure. The bill requires federal agencies to update records within 180 days to reflect the new name and mandates the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to ensure all references to the Gulf of Mexico are changed to the Gulf of America.
President Trump has expressed interest in renaming other geographic features, including potentially changing the name of the Persian Gulf.