Formation July 10, 1973 | Website U.S. Embassy - Nassau | |
 | ||
Nominator The President of the United States Inaugural holder Moncrieff J. Spear
as Chargé d'Affaires ad interim | ||
The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Bahamas, usually simply called U.S. Ambassador to the Bahamas, is an official position and title appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate by majority vote. The ambassador oversees diplomatic relations and foreign policy between the United States and The Bahamas.
Traditionally, the position is considered a "plum post"—a sought-after post that is usually appointed to political friends of the president. The ambassador lives in Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas. However, due to political disputes between Republican senators and President Barack Obama, the United States Senate has refused to confirm an ambassador for many years, and the post has accordingly been vacant and held by interim appointees since November 2011. Cassandra Butts, nominated for the post in 2013, died of leukaemia in 2016 having spent more than two years awaiting a vote on her appointment.
List of U.S. Ambassadors to the Bahamas
The following is a list of United States Ambassadors, or other Chiefs of Mission, to The Bahamas. The title given by the United States State Department to this position is currently Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.