Ontario Premier Doug Ford unveiled a large sign on the shoreline of Lake Ontario, stating "Lake Ontario. Now and Always," in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's executive order to rename the lake to Lake America. Trump signed the order on Thursday, accompanied by AI-generated videos depicting the name change. Ford stated, "Long before President Trump, this lake was called Lake Ontario. Long after President Trump is gone, it will still be called Lake Ontario."
The exchange follows the collapse of trade talks, during which the U.S. imposed new tariffs of 50% on $20 billion (C$28 billion) of Canadian goods. Canada plans to implement corresponding tariffs next month.
Trump's executive order allows the U.S. Department of the Interior 30 days to update the name change with the Geographic Names Information Service. Canadian officials have dismissed Trump's decree, asserting that other countries are not obligated to follow U.S. naming decisions.
Ford emphasized the importance of the lake's name, stating, "Just in case President Trump or anyone else forgets, we've set up this sign to remind them, it's Lake Ontario, now and forever." This sentiment was echoed by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who previously remarked that "things must be called by their name, and this lake is called Lake Ontario - today and forever."
The Great Lakes, including Lake Ontario, have names that originate from indigenous words, with Lake Superior named after an anglicized French term. The lake borders both the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of New York.
In 2025, Trump signed a similar order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, which was rejected by Mexico, leading to a legal dispute with Google over map naming conventions. Users in the U.S. see "Gulf of America," while users in Mexico see "Gulf of Mexico."