Four nominees selected to stand for election as Episcopal Presiding Bishop

The Episcopal Church’s Joint Nominating Committee for the Election of the Presiding Bishop today announced the names of the bishops it will nominate to succeed Presiding Bishop Michael Curry.

Its nominees are:

Videos of each nominee discussing a biblical image or metaphor that resonates with this moment in the life of the church and the role of the presiding bishop are available on the General Convention website. This page also includes photos and links to each bishop’s biography on their diocesan websites.

The four names will be formally submitted to the General Convention during a joint session on June 25, a day before the House of Bishops is scheduled to elect the 28th presiding bishop.

Following the Convention Eucharist at 8:30 a.m. on June 26 in the Kentucky International Convention Center, the bishops with seat, voice, and vote will travel to Christ Church Cathedral in downtown Louisville, where the election will take place during a sequestered session in the context of prayer and reflection. The House of Deputies will then be asked to confirm the election.

“We appreciate the many Episcopalians who prayerfully set us on our way to discerning this slate of nominees,” said the Rt. Rev. Mark Lattime, bishop of Alaska, who co-chairs the committee with Canon Dr. Steve Nishibayashi of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles.

The Rev. Maureen-Elizabeth Hagen, a deacon who chairs the nominations subcommittee, added, “We felt the Holy Spirit’s presence during this process and are prayerfully thankful for the guidance we received.”

In keeping with the protocol of previous presiding bishop elections, the nominees will not be available for media interviews.

The announcement of the nominees now opens a 13-day period during which any bishop or deputy to the 81st General Convention may indicate their desire to nominate a bishop not on the committee’s slate. The committee recently outlined the process that must be followed before any additional bishops can be nominated in that manner. Bishops and deputies will receive a link to the nomination form from the General Convention Office.

All nominees, including any nominated by petition, will address General Convention attendees from 4-6 p.m. EDT on June 21. That session will be livestreamed and available for on-demand viewing. The nominees’ names will be formally submitted to the General Convention during a joint session of the two houses on June 25. Any petition nominees will be submitted during that session as well.

“We look forward to presenting these bishops to the convention for its consideration,” Nishibayashi said.

Curry’s nine-year term concludes Oct. 31, 2024. The presiding bishop-elect’s nine-year term officially begins Nov. 1, 2024.

Committee members began working together in the fall of 2021. View the committee roster.

They surveyed the church in May 2022 about the skills, qualities, and gifts most desired in its next presiding bishop, considering what the church and the world may look like in the next decade. The members used the 6,092 responses, along with hours of conversation and prayers, to develop a “Profile for the Election of the 28th Presiding Bishop.”

In May 2023, the committee invited the members of the church to suggest bishops they ought to consider. Between May 15 and July 15, 111 Episcopalians submitted bishops’ names. There were some duplications among the suggestions. Bishops could also nominate themselves. None did.

The committee invited all the bishops named to enter the discernment process. Those who agreed provided biographical information, references, and written and video responses to several questions. They were interviewed via Zoom.In January the members decided which of the bishops to invite to meet with them during an in-person retreat March 18-23 at the Lake Logan Conference Center in the Episcopal Diocese of Western North Carolina. The committee discerned its slate at the close of that gathering.