Laity elect all 16 GC and JC2020 delegates

By Jessica Brodie

GREENVILLE—South Carolina United Methodists have elected their slate of lay delegates to the 2020 General and Jurisdictional conferences, and just two more clergy delegates remain.

Results will be announced Thursday morning as to whether the final two clergy delegates were elected Wednesday evening, or if more ballots are to be taken Thursday morning.

The body has elected most of the 32 delegates to represent South Carolina at the conferences. Sixteen (eight lay, eight clergy) plus alternates will head to General Conference, set for May 5-15, 2020, in Minneapolis. An additional 16 (eight lay, eight clergy) will head to Jurisdictional Conference along with the 16 elected for General Conference. Jurisdictional Conference is set for July 15-18, 2020, at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina.

Elected were as follows:

General Conference Clergy

1. 
   
2. Rev. Ken Nelson (Clergy Ballot 1, 291 votes)
   
3. Dr. Robin Dease (Clergy Ballot 1, 260 votes)
   
4. Rev. Keith Hunter (Clergy Ballot 3, 248 votes)
   
5. Rev. Susan Leonard (Clergy Ballot 4, 197 votes)
   
6. Rev. Emily Sutton (Clergy Ballot 5, 185 votes)
   
7. Rev. Will Malambri (Clergy Ballot 5, 184 votes)
   
8. Rev. Tiffany Knowlin (Clergy Ballot 5, 183 votes)
   
9. Rev. Karen Jones (Clergy Ballot 7, 203 votes)
   

General Conference Laity

1. 
   
2. Jacqueline Jenkins (Lay Ballot 1, 419 votes)
   
3. James Salley (Lay Ballot 1, 372 votes)
   
4. Michael Cheatham (Lay Ballot 3, 383 votes)
   
5. Herman Lightsey (Lay Ballot 3, 374 votes)
   
6. Chris Lynch (Lay Ballot 5, 347 votes)
   
7. Martha Fridy Thompson (Lay Ballot 5, 329 votes)
   
8. David Braddon (Lay Ballot 7, 369 votes)
   
9. Emily Evans (Lay Ballot 7, 358 votes)
   

Jurisdictional Conference Clergy

1. 
   
2. Rev. Tim Rogers (JC Clergy Ballot 1, 184 votes)
   
3. Rev. Cathy Mitchell (JC Clergy Ballot 2, 182 votes)
   
4. Rev. Fran Elrod (JC Clergy Ballot 2, 178 votes)
   
5. Rev. Connie Barnes (JC Clergy Ballot 3, 194 votes)
   
6. Rev. Mary Teasley (Clergy Ballot 3, 185 votes)
   
7. Rev. Kathryn Hunter (Clergy Ballot 3, 171 votes)
   
8. TBA
   
9. TBA
   

Jurisdictional Conference Laity

1. 
   
2. Betty Void (JC Lay Ballot 1, 460 votes)
   
3. David Salter (JC Lay Ballot 1, 434 votes)
   
4. Valerie Brooks-Madden (JC Lay Ballot 1, 426 votes)
   
5. Marlene Spencer (JC Lay Ballot 1, 368 votes)
   
6. Jennifer Price (JC Lay Ballot 1, 325 votes)
   
7. Tony Watson (JC Lay Ballot 2, 350 votes)
   
8. Lou Jordan (JC Lay Ballot 3, 384 votes)
   
9. Doug Coffeen (Lay Ballot 3, 368 votes)
   

In addition to the two final clergy delegates, Annual Conference also needs to elect lay and clergy alternates Thursday morning.

Delegates were elected from a pool of eligible people who expressed a desire to be considered as a delegate. There were 35 lay nominees, each selected through their district or approved group, and 84 clergy who have articulated a desire to be a nominee. A number of write-in nominees were also considered.