Edward Sharp Walsh is an American businessman and philanthropist who has served as the

United States Ambassador to Ireland The United States ambassador to Ireland is the ambassador, ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary from the United States of America to Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is considered a highly prestigious position within the United States F ...

since 2025.

Career

Business leadership

Walsh is the president of the Walsh Company, a general contracting and project management firm he founded in 2003. Headquartered in

Morristown, New Jersey Morristown () is a Town (New Jersey), town in and the county seat of Morris County, New Jersey, Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.

, the company has achieved nationwide success in construction and real estate development. Before establishing his own firm, Walsh worked as a senior vice president at Gale & Wentworth, a diversified real estate investment and services company.

Public service and philanthropy

From 2010 to 2018, Walsh served as chairman of the

New Jersey Schools Development Authority The New Jersey Schools Development Authority (commonly referred to as NJSDA or SDA) is the State agency responsible for fully funding and managing the new construction, modernization and renovation of school facilities projects in 31 New Jersey s ...

under then-Governor

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...

. In this role, he oversaw significant improvements in educational infrastructure, helping modernize schools across the state. In addition to his public service, Walsh has been an active supporter of the Republican Party. He was a delegate to the

2020 Republican National Convention The 2020 Republican National Convention in which delegates of the United States Republican Party selected the party's nominees for president and vice president in the 2020 United States presidential election, was held from August 24 to 27, 2 ...

and backed Donald Trump re-election campaign. Walsh is a dedicated philanthropist, contributing to several nonprofit organizations in

Morris Morris may refer to: Places Australia * St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia Canada * Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry * Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba ** Morris, Man ...

and

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

counties,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. He has been recognized for his work with the

American Cancer Society The American Cancer Society (ACS) is a nationwide non-profit organization dedicated to eliminating cancer. The ACS publishes the journals ''Cancer'', '' CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians'' and '' Cancer Cytopathology''. History The society w ...

, Somerset Hills Learning Institute, Interfaith Food Pantry of Morristown, Employment Horizons, JVS, and Family Service of Morris County. His contributions have had a lasting impact on his local community.

Appointment as U.S. ambassador to Ireland

President-elect

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

announced Walsh’s nomination as the

on 14 December 2024. The announcement was made via Trump’s

Truth Social Truth Social (stylized as TRUTH) is an alt-tech social media platform owned by Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), an American media and technology company majority-owned by U.S. president Donald Trump. It has been called a "Twitter clone" ...

platform. Trump described Walsh as a “Champion Golfer” and a valuable “asset” for the ambassadorship. Walsh was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

on 4 June 2025, by a vote of 57 to 38, receiving the support of seven Democrats. He was sworn in to office by Secretary of State

Marco Rubio Marco Antonio Rubio (; born May 28, 1971) is an American politician, lawyer, and diplomat serving since 2025 as the 72nd United States Secretary of State, United States secretary of state. A member of the Republican Party (United States) , Rep ...

in a ceremony in the

Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the president of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval room has three lar ...

on 19 June 2025.

Personal life

Walsh lives in

Bedminster, New Jersey Bedminster is a Township (New Jersey), township in Somerset County, New Jersey, Somerset County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 8,272, an increase of 107 (+1.3%) from the 201 ...

. While he is an active golfer and community leader, additional details about his family life remain undisclosed.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, Edward Sharp 21st-century American philanthropists Living people American business executives American construction businesspeople American real estate company founders New Jersey Republicans People from Bedminster, New Jersey Philanthropists from New Jersey Villanova University alumni Year of birth missing (living people)