News of the Western Jurisdiction Conference

Episcopal Elections Get Underway

Episcopal Elections Get Underway

Day 2 of the Western Jurisdiction Conference saw the continuation of the process of getting to know the 12 nominees for bishop in the West.

The previous message mentioned a changed process for election. Here is an overview:

1. Annual Conferences may nominate one or more people to be considered for election.

2. A "nominating referendum" will be taken soon after the convening of the conference to determine all additional persons who have not been nominated by the various Annual Conferences. A minimum of 5 votes determines who will be considered. The numerical vote count will not be announced at this referendum.

3. All those nominated give a 5-minute presentation without the other nominees present.

4. A variety of opportunities for getting further acquainted will be available, including "fishbowl" sharing with 3 nominees in 4 separate groups of delegates; individual conversations at a reception; interviews with delegations and caucuses.

5. Votes are taken by ballot, with each ballot containing the number of names of the bishops to be elected. I.e., this year, 2 names must be on each ballot.

6. After each vote, the body may call for a recess during which the delegates may interview specific candidates or share together.

7. The process continues until the required number of bishops are elected.

This process is under the supervision of the episcopacy committee of the jurisdiction.

This process began yesterday, with the referendum being taken and the resulting presentations being described in the previous report.

The process continued last night at the memorial service and subsequent reception. Many delegates reported very enlightening conversations with those nominees in whom they were interested.

Today, the fishbowl process gave groups of delegates a chance to see 3 nominees in the same place and answer the same questions. The questions were written by the jurisdictional episcopacy committee and were all known by the nominees ahead of time. But the specific questions were drawn randomly from an envelope of all the questions.

Each fishbowl had time enough for about 4-5 questions. No questions were allowed from the floor.

However, during the delegation meetings, questions came from anyone. The RMC delegation had invited all who were from the Conference to be a part of these meetings, so questions were asked by delegates and non-delegates alike. These interviews gave the nominees a chance to clarify or expand upon their initial 5-minute presentations, as well as address new concerns. As one who has attended both fishbowls and a couple of delegation meetings, I can say that the questions and answers were thoughtfully asked and answered, with each nominee finding a chance to articulate their views.

Results of ballots to 5:30 p.m.:

Ballot 1:
names reported who received more than 2 votes
88 cast; 1 invalid; 58 to elect.
Hagiya 28
Hoshibata 26
Simeon 23
Schuster 16
Jones 14
Silva-Netto 13
Kang 12
Carcano 11
Wulf 11
Parrish 9
Sprecher 8
Dammann 2

Ballot 2:
88 cast; 0 invalid; 59 to elect

Hagiya 36
Simeon 27
Hoshibata 26
Schuster 18
Parrish 13
Jones 12
Wulf 10
Silva-Netto 10
Carcano 10
Sprecher 7
Kang 6

Ballot 3:
88 cast, 1 invalid; 58 to elect

Hagiya 34
Hoshibata 34
Simeon 27
Schuster 16
Wulf 13
Carcano 11
Jones 10
Kang 8
Parrish 8
Sprecher 7
Silva-Netto 5

Ballot 4:
88 cast; 59 needed

Hoshibata 39
Hagiya 30
Simeon 23
Schuster 14
Silva-Netto 14
Parrish 13
Carcano 12
Wulf 12
Sprecher 9
Kang 5
Jones 4

In between each vote, reports are delivered of various items from the previous Jurisdictional Conference, from the Western Jurisdiction Leadership Team, the local arrangements committee, etc. The Leadership Team invited creative feedback on the new Jurisdiction vision and mission (content of which to come in a later note).

Tonight was a retirement banquet for the retiring bishops, Dew and Galvan.

Caucuses are meeting tonight as are delegations. The next vote will be in the morning.

Be sure to visit the rmcumc.org website for updates during the day on the elections.

Photos

http://rmcumc.org/News/wj2004/

My observation is that this can be a grueling and emotional process for all, but especially for those who are nominees. Your prayers holding each of the nominees in love and grace, as well as the whole Conference, are most welcome!

Ben Roe
Information Administrator, RMCUMC
Denver, Colorado, USA