BOSTON, Massachusetts: Irish-American Claire D. Cronin was sworn in as the 25th U.S. Ambassador to Ireland on January 19.

Cronin was born Claire McLaughlin in Brockton, Massachusetts to Phyllis Lucey and James Daniel McLaughlin. Her father was the son of an Irish immigrant from the Inishowen Peninsula in northern Co. Donegal, and all four of Phyllis Lucey's grandparents were Irish.

Cronin chose for the ceremony to be held in her native Boston, Massachusetts in the Chamber of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, where she has served since 2013. In 2021 was elected as the first woman to become the Majority Leader of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

Standing with Cronin while taking the ambassadorial oath was her husband Ray and their two daughters, Cara and Kerry.

The members of the House of Representatives cheered following Cronin's being sworn in.

In the 2020 presidential election, Cronin had been a fundraiser in Massachusetts.

During her testimony before the U.S. Senate's Foreign Relations Committee on September 29, Cronin spoke of her Irish roots: "When my grandfather left Donegal for the promise that America held, I can't help but wonder what he would have thought if he knew his granddaughter would one day be testifying before this esteemed committee as the nominee to be the U.S. Ambassador to Ireland.

"The Irish first arrived on our shores before the founding of our nation. Their significant contributions, sacrifice, and hard work helped define the American spirit and shape our success today."

Cronin is the 25th U.S. Ambassador to Ireland and is the first female to hold the position since Jean Kennedy Smith, who served from 1993 - 1998.