A Small Irish Town Claims Victory After Biden Win

[appalachiablue]

Source: CNN

(CNN) The stars and stripes have been fluttering all week on the streets of Ballina -- the town of just 10,000 in the west of Ireland where US president-elect Joe Biden's Irish ancestors hail from.

Ten of the former vice president's 16 great-great-grandparents were born in Ireland, according to the Irish for Biden campaign, with Edward Blewitt, Biden's great-great-great-grandfather, providing the Ballina connection.

On Saturday, as CNN projected Biden's White House win, Ballina residents came out to celebrate their distant kin's success. "I think Ballina has saved the world tonight, because without Ballina, there would be no Joe Biden," Smiler Mitchell, a local publican, told CNN. Balloons were tied to cars and the crowd sang "The Green and Red of Mayo," a famous ballad about the county where Ballina is situated.

One car with a cardboard cut out of Biden in the front seat had a license plate which read, "PENNSYLVANIA BIDEN #1." In the lead-up to the election, the community held a "Ridin' for Biden" event around the bridges crossing the River Moy with a carousel of cars passing the town's iconic cathedral and finishing in front of a mural of the man himself, erected in the town's main square...

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/07/europe/ancestral-homes-biden-us-election-intl/index.html

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- Joe Blewitt (left), a cousin of Joe Biden, with (from left) his wife Deirdre, daughter Lauren (7), Emer Bourke, his aunt Breege Bourke & his father Brendan Blewitt as they began celebrating in anticipation of the results of the US election.

[snowybirdie]

1. A fellow Mayo Man (person)

My grandmother came from a nearby town Castlebar. An area that saw the worst of the famine. BTW, Biden loosly translates to Button in the old language.

[appalachiablue]

2. Very interesting, TY. 'Button' makes sense. What I saw of Dublin,

Temple Bar and environs on a brief business trip one summer was terrific.

[cate94]

12. Ancestors from Castlebar

Great grandparent. Hi cuz!

[CBHagman]

13. Scranton was full of people who came from County Mayo.

I'm still trying to find out exactly where my Scranton relatives came from, but I do know my great-great-aunt married a man from Ballycastle.

[mopinko]

3. i'm not sure

how we are how we are cousins, but if you go far back enough, all us irish american are cousins.
drinkin to m' cousin joe to tonight.

[H2O Man]

5. +1

I do not drink, but I am burning one this very night.

[mopinko]

6. edibles

and $100 champagne in a tiffany flute.

[snowybirdie]

7. Thanks

Since we both have relatives from the same area, I'm claiming Joe as a cousin. God Bless America. 🇱🇷

[mopinko]

8. i claim all irish americans as cousins

the average irish american has 10k cousins, so...
i have a couple hundred that i actually know.

[snowybirdie]

9. Hubby rhreathened

To opt for Irish citizenship and moving to the olde sod if rtump reelected. If grandparents were Irish citizens, we could claim it. Thank goodness we're staying put 😊

[mopinko]

10. working on mine.

entitled on both sides.
and am the gggggrandniece of michael dwyer, the chief of wicklow.
figure there is a title i'm entitled to.

[cate94]

14. Agreed!

👋

[CountAllVotes]

4. Congratulations to the relatives in Ireland

You've got plenty to be proud of there, the next President of the USA!

[FM123]

11. And this touching tribute to Joe (and America) from Ireland....

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100214495989

[Granny M]

15. Right down the road from ourselves in West Sligo!

We are rejoicing here in Ireland, and not only in Ballina!

Edited to add that the one exception is probably Doonbeg. They haz a sad. They'll get over it. I hope the place is sold and fumigated well for the next owners.

[appalachiablue]

16. Thanks for the news. Big hug & kiss to all in Ireland!

The summer visit Dublin and environs I did in 1998 was great.

[ananda]

17. Drumcollagher, Limerick here!

Slainte