Could the U.S. Really Make Canada Its 51st State? How the Process Works

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Former President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state, proposing to erase the 5,525-mile border separating the two nations. While Canadians find the idea absurd, the legal and political obstacles to such a move are immense.

In Trump’s vision, the traditional Lower 48 states would become the contiguous 50, with Canada absorbed between the mainland U.S. and Alaska—leaving Hawaii as the only non-continental state.

“If people played the game right, it would be 100% certain they’d become a state,” Trump recently claimed.

Initially, Canada dismissed Trump’s remarks as a joke. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau firmly stated that his country would never agree to statehood. However, reports suggest that Trudeau has privately acknowledged Trump’s repeated annexation comments as potentially serious rather than mere rhetoric.

What Would It Take for Canada to Become a U.S. State?

The Process for Adding a New State

For Canada to become a U.S. state, Congress would need to approve its admission.

A simple majority in the House of Representatives is required, but Senate rules complicate the process. Due to the filibuster, at least 60 votes in the 100-member Senate would be needed to move such a bill forward—an almost impossible hurdle for significant legislation.

The U.S. Constitution’s Admissions Clause (Article IV, Section 3) states:

“New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.”

If Congress approved Canada’s statehood, the president would also need to sign it into law. Trump has made it clear that he would be eager to do so.

Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump ally, jokingly commented on X that after all 50 states certified Trump’s Electoral College victory, “They skipped Canada. We’ll fix that next time!”

However, no serious legislative efforts are underway to offer statehood to America’s northern neighbour, making this scenario highly unlikely.