The Diocese of Tennessee’s history of multiple ballots over two days to elect a bishop was repeated on March 18. Clergy and lay delegates to a special convention at Christ Church Cathedral in Nashville failed to elect a successor to the Rt. Rev. Bertram N. Herlong after 14 ballots spread over 10 hours. According to the election procedure, the winning candidate must achieve a two-thirds majority in both the clergy and lay orders.
The special electing convention will resume March 25. Bishop Herlong previously announced his intention to retire next October.
On the first ballot the Rev. Canon Neal O. Michell, canon missioner for the Diocese of Dallas, polled first among lay delegates to convention, a position he held for the remainder of the day, while running second in the clergy order with 35 percent. The Rev. Winston B. Charles, rector of Christ Church, Raleigh, N.C., led in the clergy order with 42 percent and ran second among the laity with 21 percent of the vote.
The Rev. Canon James B. Magness, Canon to the Ordinary of the Diocese of Kentucky, ran third in both houses and the Rev. Canon Brian Cox, rector of Christ the King, Santa Barbara, Calif., polled fourth.
The candidates retained these respective positions until the fifth ballot when Canon Magness fell to fourth place in the clergy order and Canon Cox rose to third. By the seventh ballot Canon Magness moved back into third in the clergy order and on the eighth ballot moved to second place in the lay order ahead of Fr. Charles while Canon Michell took the lead in both houses.
By the 10th ballot and for the remainder of the day, Canon Magness had moved to first place in the clergy order and second in the lay order; Canon Michell held steady as first in the lay order and second in the clergy order, with Charles third and Cox forth position in each house.
Some participants told the Nashville Tennessean after the convention adjourned that the results reflected the current divisions in the Church, however, multiple ballots have been the norm in recent Tennessee episcopal elections.
The 1986 Tennessee election went to 38 ballots, while the 1993 election required 15 ballots spread over two days. Both of those elections followed the same pattern as the March 18 voting, with the clergy and lay orders initially supporting separate candidates.
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