A panel of three judges has made a decision that prevents Donald Trump from reinstating his name on the Kennedy Center’s white marble exterior while an appeal is ongoing. The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied a request by the Kennedy Center’s board of trustees, which is led by Trump, to maintain the president’s name on the establishment during their appeal against a previous ruling mandating its removal.

Earlier this year, the center was renamed The Donald J Trump and The John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, a change that was deemed unlawful in a ruling by US District Judge Christopher Cooper. The judge stated that only Congress has the authority to rename the center and instructed the removal of Trump’s name.

Following unsuccessful attempts to block the ruling, the Trump administration complied with the removal of the president’s name from the center’s facade and signage last month, although the alteration remains covered from public view by a tarp.

In their ruling on Wednesday, the judges expressed that the board’s request lacked evidence of irreparable harm if Trump’s name is kept off the building throughout the appeal process. The board contended that the removal could hinder fundraising efforts, but the judges found this assertion unsubstantiated.

Trump had replaced the Kennedy Center’s board of trustees when he assumed office in 2025, subsequently being named as chairman by the new board. The lawsuit challenging the renaming was filed by Joyce Beatty, a Democratic representative from Ohio and a member of the Kennedy Center board.

In response to the latest ruling, Congresswoman Beatty emphasized the unlawfulness of the administration’s efforts to rename the Kennedy Center. She stated, “His name no longer desecrates this sacred memorial, which belongs to the American people. Now it is time for the Trump administration to accept this, comply with the law, and take the tarps down.”

Last month, spectators gathered in front of the center in anticipation of witnessing the removal of the signage. However, a tarp covering the scaffolding used for the removal concealed the process.