State lawmakers want to name part of I-70 after President Trump

President Donald Trump speaks during an event at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla., Dec. 22, 2025. Trump said in a radio interview that the United States had knocked out “a big facility” last week as part of his administration’s campaign against Venezuela, an apparent reference to an American attack on a drug trafficking site. (Eric Lee/The New York Times)

Credit: NYT

Credit: NYT

President Donald Trump speaks during an event at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla., Dec. 22, 2025. Trump said in a radio interview that the United States had knocked out “a big facility” last week as part of his administration’s campaign against Venezuela, an apparent reference to an American attack on a drug trafficking site. (Eric Lee/The New York Times)

Two Ohio lawmakers want to name two miles of Interstate 70 in Franklin County after President Donald J. Trump.

House Bill 638, which was introduced in the Ohio House of Representatives on Dec. 23, proposes naming part of I-70 between mile markers 98 and 100 in Franklin County after the current U.S. president.

The official name of the highway, if the bill passes, would be the “President Donald Trump Freedom Highway.”

The bill requires the Ohio Department of Transportation to erect signs with the new name if passed.

State Rep. D.J. Swearingen, R-Huron, and state Rep. Jeff LaRe, R–Violet Twp., proposed the idea. Neither responded to a request for comment.

It’s common for parts of Ohio’s highways to be named after prominent people in the community.

For example, part of U.S. 35 in Greene County is named after longtime Greene County sheriff Gene Fischer. He died suddenly in November 2021 after suffering a medical emergency while attending a Buckeye State Sheriffs Association convention in Sandusky.

Ohio lawmakers have considered at least 49 proposals to name parts of highways after various members of the public during the 2025 session.

In 2024, lawmakers attempted to name Mosquito Lake State Park in northeast Ohio as Donald J. Trump State Park but the bill did not get out of committee.

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