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Freedom 250’s Great American State Fair kicks off 16-day festival on National Mall: ‘America come to life’
The Great American State Fair is kicking off on Thursday morning, as residents from across the country flock to Washington, D.C., to celebrate the country’s 250th birthday.
Event organizers, led by Freedom 250, have been planning the 16-day festival for months as part of a landmark initiative including all 50 states to mark the semiquincentennial. Fair attendees will have the opportunity through July 10 to see exhibitions featuring each state, stop by a rodeo, ride a towering Ferris wheel, and sample food vendors, all on the National Mall.
“This is America come to life in the very heart of our capital,” Freedom 250 CEO Keith Krach told the Washington Examiner. “The best of American food, music, and ingenuity will be on display.”
“Admission is free, and every American is invited, so bring your family, wave your flag, and come celebrate the country we love and the limitless promise of the next 250 years,” he said.
President Donald Trump, who spearheaded Freedom 250 to mark the milestone anniversary, launched the fair with opening remarks on the evening of June 24. That event featured military flyovers and performances by “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band and country music star Lee Greenwood, who sang “God Bless America” as Trump walked onstage. Notable attendees included House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), acting attorney general Todd Blanche, and FBI Director Kash Patel.
“It’s my honor to officially kick off the celebration with the Great American State Fair,” Trump said. “It’s going to be great. It’s going to be unbelievable.”
“Just like those patriots of 1776, over the past 17 months, we have taken power back from the far-off political class,” he added. “They’re trying to gain it back, but it’s not going to happen. We have reclaimed our sovereignty, regained our liberty, restored our prosperity, and we have saved our country in all things. We are once again putting a thing called America first.”
People look at the stage before President Donald Trump speaks at the opening of the Great American State Fair on the National Mall, Wednesday, June 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Throughout the remainder of June and into July, the “World’s Fair-scale” event will include a refurbished Smithsonian carousel, a 110-foot Ferris wheel, movie screenings, musical performances, and a variety of themed days, including Make America Healthy Again on Mondays. “Innovative” companies and government agencies, ranging from NASA, Harley-Davidson, and John Deere to YouTube, Meta, and the Washington Commanders, will also have exhibits at the fair.
A rodeo will also be held daily on the D.C. fairgrounds, offering attendees an educational twist on the experience, designed to highlight “the evolution of the American cowboy. The acclaimed Cervi Championship Rodeo is hosting the festivities and bringing in some famed trick riders, saddle bronc riders, and horseback performers from across the country.
People cheer as President Donald Trump speaks at the opening of the Great American State Fair on the National Mall, Wednesday, June 24, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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“Determination, grit, work ethic, and integrity: Those four words are big in our culture,” rodeo chief Binion Cervi told the Washington Examiner. “It simply isn’t an event at 10. It’s a way of life that people can see that’s been passed down from one generation to the next.”
“If people come to understand, like how important this was to where we are today, then it’ll open their eyes up and really shine light on something, on a way of life that people shouldn’t take for granted, because we wouldn’t be where we are today if it hadn’t happened,” he said.
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