Treasury Unveils U.S. Mint’s 1776-2026 Trump $1 Coin

The Treasury Department unveiled a 1776 ~ 2026 $1 coin featuring President Donald J. Trump, with U.S. Mint collector products expected in late fall as part of the nation’s 250th anniversary observances.

The Philadelphia-struck dollar will have a circulating finish but will contain no gold or other precious metal despite its gold-like appearance. It will use the same manganese-brass clad composition, size and weight as Native American and American Innovation $1 coins.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the dollar would honor “the enduring legacy of liberty” and serve as “a lasting symbol of patriotism.”

Trump Portrait and Presidential Seal

The obverse features a forward-facing portrait of Trump with the inscriptions LIBERTY, IN GOD WE TRUST and the dual date 1776 ~ 2026. U.S. Mint Chief Engraver Joseph Menna created the portrait, with his initials JFM appearing above Trump’s shoulder.

Designed by former Chief Engraver Frank Gasparro, the reverse depicts the Presidential Seal. The eagle holds an olive branch and a bundle of arrows, with a shield on its breast and a banner inscribed E PLURIBUS UNUM in its beak. Additional inscriptions read UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and ONE DOLLAR, while “250” appears within the shield for the Semiquincentennial.

The coin will have a plain edge without lettering, unlike current Native American and American Innovation dollars, and no mint mark. It will weigh 8.10 grams, measure 26.49 millimeters in diameter and be composed of 88.5% copper, 6% zinc, 3.5% manganese and 2% nickel.

The Mint has not said whether any will be supplied through the Federal Reserve for circulation. No dollar coins have been ordered for circulation in recent years, though the Mint continues striking them for collector products.

Final Designs Follow Earlier Federal Review

The final designs for the dollar follow a federal review process covered by CoinNews in February, when the Mint presented three Trump portrait obverses and eight reverses featuring eagles, Great Seal imagery and Liberty Bell elements.

The Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) recommended obverse #3, which depicted Trump in profile, and reverse #5, featuring a heraldic eagle adapted from the Great Seal of the United States, while also expressing interest in learning which designs the president preferred.

Neither recommendation was adopted. The Treasury selected obverse #2, featuring the nearly forward-facing Trump portrait, and a reverse using the Presidential Seal.

Federal coin design recommendations are advisory, with final selections made by the Treasury secretary. The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC), which also normally reviews proposed coin designs, declined to consider a Trump coin.

Living President Raises Questions

Trump’s appearance on the dollar has generated debate over the use of a living president on U.S. money and the design-review process.

The Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020, Public Law 116-330, authorizes the Treasury secretary to issue $1 coins during 2026 with designs emblematic of the Semiquincentennial. The law prohibits portraits of living people on the reverse but places no comparable restriction on the obverse.

During the CFA review, a Mint representative said legal research by the Mint and Treasury Department determined that the proposed coin was lawful.

Although depicting living people on U.S. coins is unusual, there have been several exceptions. Among them, a 1926 half dollar marking the nation’s 150th anniversary featured then-President Calvin Coolidge, while the 1995 Special Olympics World Games silver dollar portrayed Eunice Kennedy Shriver, becoming the first U.S. coin to feature a living woman.

Specific product options, release dates, prices, mintage limits and household order limits have not been announced.