A new poll suggests Americans are overwhelmingly rejecting the idea of expanding the U.S. by absorbing foreign territories or countries, dealing a setback to ongoing speculation surrounding President Donald Trump and his comments about potential future statehood for places such as Venezuela, Greenland and Cuba.
According to a Daily Mail/JL Partners survey of 1,003 registered voters conducted between May 15 and May 18, voters opposed all three proposed additions by significant margins.
The strongest opposition was directed toward Venezuela. The poll found that 60% of respondents somewhat or strongly opposed making Venezuela the 51st state, while support remained low even among Republican voters.
Only 19% of Republicans surveyed reportedly supported the idea.
The report noted that Venezuela is also the country where the Trump administration has taken the most direct action, including operations targeting the government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Greenland received somewhat more support but still faced overall rejection from voters. The survey found that Americans opposed Greenland statehood by roughly a 20-point margin.
Republican voters were more supportive, with 42% backing annexation of the Danish-controlled territory, while 63% of Democrats opposed the idea.
Cuba also faced broad resistance. According to the poll, 56% of respondents opposed Cuban statehood while only 22% supported it.
Trump has discussed Greenland for years and has repeatedly argued that the Arctic territory holds strategic value for the U.S.
Greenland remains under the control of Denmark, whose government has consistently rejected suggestions that the territory could be transferred to American control. Greenlandic leaders have similarly opposed the idea.
Earlier this year, controversy intensified after Trump declined to completely rule out using military pressure to secure Greenland before later softening his rhetoric. The opening of a new U.S. consulate in Nuuk recently sparked demonstrations from local residents opposed to greater American influence, per the Daily Mail.
The polling results arrive amid broader debates about Trump’s foreign policy vision and America’s role on the global stage.
Trump has previously joked or speculated publicly about statehood scenarios involving multiple foreign territories. He has also continued discussing closer integration with neighboring countries in remarks that have often generated international backlash.
Similar polling has shown Americans overwhelmingly reject making Canada a U.S. state as well.
While supporters argue that Trump’s comments are often strategic, humorous or designed to provoke negotiations, critics view the remarks as unrealistic and politically damaging.
The Daily Mail/JL Partners survey indicates that voters across party lines remain skeptical of large-scale territorial expansion, particularly when it involves incorporating foreign nations as full U.S. states.
The results suggest that while debates over immigration, border security and foreign policy remain major political issues, the idea of dramatically expanding the U.S. through new statehood proposals currently has little support among the broader American electorate.
