Council of Bishops elects new President, Bishop Kenneth H. Carter, effective May, 2018.

LAKE JUNALUSKA, NC, November 8, 2017 – Florida Area Bishop Kenneth H. Carter today was officially elected as the next president of the Council of Bishops of The United Methodist Church.

Bishop Carter will take over from Dakotas-Minnesota Area Bishop Bruce R. Ough effective at the end of the May 2018 meeting.

The United Methodist bishops also elected:

• Louisiana Area Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey as the president-designate. She is currently serving as secretary of the Council.
• North Katanga-Tanzania Bishop Mande Muyombo as secretary. Bishop Mande was elected as bishop early this year.

Executive secretary Bishop Marcus Matthews and Ecumenical Officer Bishop B. Michael Watson will continue in their current positions.

The executive secretary and ecumenical officer, who are retired bishops, serve four-year terms, starting in 2016.

Bishop Carter, Bishop Harvey and Bishop Mande –  who are active bishops – will continue in their roles as residential bishops in their areas in additional to the their additional roles in the COB.

Bishop Carter has additional responsibilities as one of the moderators of the Commission on a Way Forward.

Last Updated on November 13, 2017