First lady Melania Trump has unveiled the White House’s Halloween decorations for 2025 with a harvest-style display of pumpkins and cascading fall leaves at the South Portico, prompting a wave of online criticism that folded wider controversies about ongoing construction and a government shutdown into the reaction. An official photo posted by her office on X showed staircases lined with pumpkins and foliage draped between the columns, accompanied by the caption: “The @whitehouse is getting ready for Halloween.” The image marked Trump’s first seasonal rollout since returning as first lady and set the scene for the annual South Lawn trick-or-treat event scheduled for Thursday, 30 October. According to the event notice, the South Lawn will open for invited families, with a “pumpkin photo opportunity” and other children’s activities.
The design is notably understated compared with some past White House Halloween looks, emphasising a “fall” palette rather than overtly spooky motifs. The reappearance of a traditional family-friendly set-up comes amid unusual circumstances on the grounds: major, multi-month building works and the demolition of the East Wing as part of a larger renovation plan, coupled with a prolonged federal shutdown that has sharpened scrutiny of presidential optics. People magazine, which published close-ups of the display, described the South Portico’s leaves-and-pumpkins theme as a simpler, warmer approach than the moodier lighting schemes seen in 2019.
Within hours of the official photo, social-media responses divided along familiar lines. One thread that drew attention urged the first lady to address the construction directly, with users replying “Show us the East Wing” beneath the decoration image. Others called the presentation excessive and tone-deaf, objecting to what they described as a “colossal ‘Halloween 2025’ banner” and “way too many pumpkins” while large parts of the complex remain a worksite. That phrasing was documented in a roundup of public replies that captured frustration with the staging and with the decision to proceed with celebratory visuals while renovations disrupt customary spaces used by first ladies for holiday programming.
The White House has not publicly linked the décor choices to the renovations, but the context is inescapable on the South Grounds, where scaffolding and temporary routings have altered familiar views and traffic patterns. In its formal announcement for the Thursday event, the White House said the president and first lady “will open the South Lawn to trick-or-treaters,” signalling that the outdoor celebration—in recent years a mix of military families, local schoolchildren and community invitees—would proceed as a kids-centred evening despite the building works nearby. The notice also highlighted small-scale elements such as handing out mini pumpkins, a further indication that the emphasis this year is on approachable, photo-ready vignettes rather than large-format installations.