Cleveland has apparently decided that presidents should not have all the fun when it comes to rearranging the map.

City lawmakers in Ohio have officially renamed part of Lake Erie the “Gulf of Cleveland,” adopting a resolution whose language makes little effort to hide the joke behind it.

The measure passed 13-1 on Monday and targets the waters extending two miles from Cleveland’s shoreline between the city’s eastern and western boundaries.

Councilman Kris Harsh, who introduced the proposal, said the move was inspired by President Donald Trump’s recent geographical rebranding — including his decision to rename Lake Ontario “Lake America.”

Trump signed that executive order on August 27, directing federal agencies and maps to adopt the new name.

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Cleveland’s response could roughly be summarized as: two can play that game.

A map apparently does the trick

Harsh brought a visual aid to the council chamber while making his case.

Standing with a map carrying the words “Gulf of Cleveland” across the water, the councilman joked about how straightforward the whole process appeared.

“I feel emboldened to take the extraordinary step of renaming Lake Erie as the Gulf of Cleveland, today,” Harsh said to Cleveland.com.

“I made a map. There it is. This is all it takes. It’s now the Gulf of Cleveland.”

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One rather obvious geographical obstacle also received some attention.

“I can already hear some of you saying, ‘But Kris, it’s not even a gulf — it’s a lake.’ Who cares?” Harsh told his colleagues.

Council members ultimately approved Resolution 1047-2026, which describes the name change as applying “now and forever.” Cleveland’s official legislative database lists the measure as passed, with an effective date of September 24.

Trump provided the inspiration

Harsh’s target was not particularly subtle.

Trump has made geographical renaming a recurring feature of his second presidency. His administration changed the federal designation for the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America before turning its attention north to Lake Ontario.

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Trump’s August executive order declared that the Great Lake should instead be known federally as “Lake America,” citing its importance to US commerce, defense and history. The order requires federal departments and agencies to use the new designation.

Cleveland’s resolution openly mimics that approach while acknowledging the limits of its own authority. The new designation binds the city rather than magically transforming Lake Erie for everyone else.

Harsh later explained that the stunt was meant to poke fun at what he considers the absurdity of Washington’s renaming campaign, while also drawing attention to the consequences of government decisions.

Apple and Google may be getting some mail

Cleveland is taking the joke surprisingly far.

City departments are instructed to use “Gulf of Cleveland” on their own documents and maps for the designated portion of Lake Erie. The city clerk has also been authorized to inform mapping companies such as Apple and Google about Cleveland’s shiny new body of water.

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There is a reason those companies were singled out.

Apple and Google adopted “Lake America” for US users after Trump’s executive order, while Canadian users continued to see Lake Ontario. Users elsewhere see both names.

Cleveland’s resolution says the city refuses to be “left behind” amid a coming “deluge” of government renamings and rebrandings.

Harsh has stressed that the stunt should not be confused with council members abandoning more serious local business.

Speaking after the vote, he said the proposal took about 15 minutes of his time and cost taxpayers nothing. He pointed to work on medical debt and housing as examples of substantially more consequential issues occupying the council.

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His explanation for spending those 15 minutes on a fake gulf was considerably simpler.

“Sometimes when things get so absurd, you just kind of got to poke a little fun at how ridiculous they’ve got,” Harsh said.

Lake Erie remains Lake Erie outside Cleveland’s municipal paperwork. Along one small stretch of Ohio shoreline, however, city officials now have permission to call it something considerably grander.