“Minnetoba” as a new Canadian province?

As part of a controversial crackdown on immigration, US President Donald Trump dispatched some 3,000 ICE agents to Minneapolis, Minnesota’s largest city. This month, federal agents killed two citizens in this democratic Midwestern city.

Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse, was killed on January 24 by members of the Border Patrol (CBP).

Renée Nicole Good, a mother of the same age, was killed less than three weeks earlier, on January 7, by an immigration police officer. These events sparked a wave of criticism at the local and national levels.

In this context, Ventura stated in an episode of the SpinSisters podcast that it is “obvious” that U.S. President Donald Trump does not want Minnesota residents, and that Canada “would be happy” to welcome them.

Other Minnesotans have also discussed the possibility of joining their northern neighbor in online posts, reports CBC. As an example, the Canadian media outlet cites John Vaughn, a resident of Stillwater, in the St. Paul area.

Vaughn wrote to the local newspaper Twin Cities Pioneer Press last March to suggest that Minnesota become Canada’s 11th province, citing similarities between the state and Canada in terms of accents, climate, and love of hockey. He even proposed “Minnetoba” as the name for this new province and created bumper stickers displaying the term.

Vaughn told CBC that his proposal was “half-humorous” at the time. However, he now believes it seems “more reasonable” in light of current tensions: “This is essentially an invasion, and we all want it to end quickly,” he said.

This sentiment has also been echoed in Canada. In January 2025, in response to President Trump’s threats of annexation and tariffs, Ontario Premier Doug Ford jokingly said he would offer to buy Minnesota and Alaska.

That said, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled after the Civil War (1861-1865) that a state cannot secede without the consent of all other states.

The only other way for Minnesota to separate from the country would be to use force, Asa McKercher, Hudson Research Chair in Canada-U.S. Relations at St. Francis Xavier University (Nova Scotia), told CBC.

The presidential special envoy to Minneapolis, Tom Homan, promised to “soon” reduce the number of ICE personnel deployed in the city.

In addition, the two agents involved in Alex Pretti’s death have been suspended, which is in line with “standard” procedure, a CBP spokesperson told AFP.