The Episcopal Church Joint Nominating Committee for the Election of the Presiding Bishop (JNCPB) has set its process for petition nominations for bishops to stand for election as the 28th presiding bishop at General Convention in June 2024.

In addition to its canonically mandated work to discern and nominate at least three bishops as a committee, the JNCPB is also charged with “establishing a timely process for any bishop or deputy to nominate any other member of the House of Bishops through a petition process, and for each Bishop so nominated to be vetted through the same process of background and reference checks as all nominees, and for each Bishop so nominated to be included in the information distributed about the nominees” (Canon I.2.1(d)(4)).

The procedure established by the committee for nominations by petition is outlined below.

The canons limit the petition process to any bishop or deputy to the 81st General Convention. Those individuals may indicate their desire to nominate a bishop who is not included on the list of nominees for presiding bishop that will be announced on April 2.

• The intent-to-nominate period will open Wednesday, April 3, at 12:01 a.m. EDT and close at 11:59 p.m. EDT Monday, April 15.
• The General Convention Office will send an email to all bishops and deputies containing the link to the nomination form that must be used.

Any bishop or deputy wishing to nominate a bishop must certify on the form that they have that bishop’s permission. Nominations cannot be accepted from alternate deputies.  

The following information must be provided on the form:

• The full name of the bishop or deputy submitting the nomination, including:
  • diocese (or other position) in which the nominating deputy or bishop currently serves
  • work/office phone number
  • cell phone number
  • work or personal email address
• Full name of the bishop being nominated, including:
  • diocese (or other position) in which the bishop currently serves
  • work/office phone number
  • cell phone number
  • preferred email address
  • signed consent of the bishop being nominated (included on the nomination form)

Applications to be completed by the petition nominee will be forwarded to the nominee upon receipt of the completed nomination form. The bishop must complete the application form and return it to the committee no later than 72 hours after the nominee received the application to allow for proper vetting as required by canon.

The canons require that any bishop whose name is submitted in this process must undergo the same background screening process that the JNCPB completed for its nominees, including, but not limited to, criminal records check, credit check, civil court records check, driver’s license check, psychological examination, and submission of a physical examination report.

The application will require four references: a bishop, a priest or deacon, a layperson, and one additional person. One of the four must be on the diocesan staff, and one must be involved in diocesan governance. Those references must be available for interviews the week of April 15-20.

For that reason, the JNCPB encourages bishops and deputies to submit their intent to nominate information as soon as possible, beginning April 3.

The JNCPB will present all nominees to both houses of General Convention on Friday, June 21. Formal nomination of candidates will follow on Tuesday, June 25. Bishops will elect the next presiding bishop during a sequestered session on Wednesday, June 26. The House of Deputies will then be asked to vote to confirm or not confirm the election by the House of Bishops.

The JCNPB began working together in the fall of 2021. View the committee roster.

For more information, contact the committee at pb28@episcopalchurch.org.

Follow the committee on the following social media sites:

• Facebook: facebook.com/PB28Nominations
• Twitter: twitter.com/PB28Nominations, @PB28Nominations
• Instagram: instagram.com/pb28nominatingcommittee

See past press releases about the committee’s work.