Trump's Great American State Fair opens with melted ice cream, empty booths

WASHINGTON – The Great American State Fair is underway at the National Mall to mark the United States' 250th birthday. But not everything is off to such a great start.

The event has quickly faced problems including power outages, melting ice cream – and a lack of representation from states that declined to send delegations.

While organizers assured visitors all parts of the nation would be represented, at least 10 states and territories refused to participate, with many citing the price tag to send staff to the 16-day event as their reason for opting out.

Booths for Connecticut, Oregon, Washington, Maine, Alaska, the U.S. Virgin Islands featured just backdrops and chairs or carpets.

But other states went all-out for the semiquincentennial. The Texas booth allowed visitors to take photos with the Alamo, play with an interactive display for long-running music series "Austin City Limits" and sit inside a spaceship. Meanwhile, the Nevada booth was Las Vegas-themed. California's booth offered attendees the opportunity to enter a raffle for a free vacation.

USA TODAY visited the fair on Friday, June 26. Here's what we noticed and what attendees said.

Visitors react to states refusing to participate

William Connor, 49, of Eldersburg, Maryland, said he was surprised by the states that refused to participate.

"Celebrating 250 years only happens once, so they kind of missed out," he said. "If they came and saw what it was like here, it's not like it's a Trump festival, it's basically celebrating America."

Though Massachusetts declined to send staff, Donna, 72, a retired teacher from Western Massachusetts who asked to only use her first name, decided to take matters into her own hands. She drove nine hours from her home, bringing cases of maple syrup and kids' coloring books from the Massachusetts Maple Producers Association to volunteer at her state's booth. She told USA TODAY she's the only volunteer from her state and is working from roughly 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time each day.

"I didn't think of the idea for a couple of days," she said. "Then I decided, 'Wow, I could just go there myself.'"

Ongoing mishaps

Besides empty booths, the event has also been troubled by electricity problems. On Thursday, June 25, attendees reported issues with the generator, forcing the Ferris wheel, one of the fair's main attractions, to shut down for roughly two hours. A day later, workers in the food hall were still waiting for a shipment of ice cream after their entire selection melted due to ongoing electrical problems.

Some of the food options were also unavailable for part of the lunch service, like boneless wings.

A few other attractions were also out of service on Friday. West Virginia's booth – which featured a driving simulator that let visitors compete based on both their driving skills and how well they sang John Denver's 1971 hit "Take Me Home, Country Roads" – was shut down due to air conditioning issues. Several screens in a National Geographic display also weren't working.

Fair highlights

Despite the ongoing issues, the sparse number of visitors entertained themselves with interactive exhibits, like dressing up as former President George Washington or speaking with an actress portraying Betsy Ross. A pop-up Budweiser bar served as an oasis for people wanting to beat the Washington summer heat.

Michelle Catan said she and her husband, Paul, who are both in their 60s, traveled from Oneonta, New York, to DC for the "once in a lifetime event."

The couple, who married in Las Vegas in 1998, enjoyed taking a photo with a replica of the famous "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign in the Nevada booth.

"I love going to each of these states and seeing what they have," Michelle Catan said. "We're very blessed to live in this country."

Attendees had less time than expected if they did want to visit each state on Friday. The fair closed several hours early due to rain.

Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at mdelrey@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's Great American State Fair opens with melted ice cream, empty booths

Reporting by Michelle Del Rey , USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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This story was originally published June 26, 2026 at 3:54 PM.