Graves Security
The Rev. Gary Graves discusses increased security for delegate badges that will be used for the 2020 United Methodist General Conference in May. Graves, secretary of the conference spoke at the 2020 Pre-General Conference Briefing in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo by Mike DuBose, UM News.)
Just as John Prine once sang about your flag decal not getting you into heaven anymore, attendees at General Conference 2020 won’t get in without a government ID and a new badge with their photo on it.
That was the word from General Conference Secretary Gary Graves about heightened security for the 2020 session Jan. 24 during the Pre-General Conference Briefing for delegates and communicators. The traditional two-day briefing was sponsored by United Methodist Communications.
Increased security measures were developed last fall after an investigation into alleged voting irregularities at the special 2019 General Conference found evidence that ineligible people had voted on some key issues. Although the General Commission on the General Conference chose not to invalidate the votes because of slim margins, tightening security has been a top priority ever since.
During the Pre-General Conference Briefing, Rev. Graves explained new steps for receiving credentials:
- Everyone needs a government-issued identification with a photo. In addition, delegates must present a credential card from their respective annual conferences.
- Delegates will receive credentials separately from “official participants” such as media, agency staff, observers and others.
- Each person must register individually. Group registrations will no longer be permitted.
- A photo of each person will be taken at the time of registration. The GC2020 photo ID badge will be printed at registration. Name-only tags will no longer be accepted.
Rev. Graves said a “credentials assistance” office has been set up to deal with registration problems.
The secretary explained that primary delegates can leave the voting floor, but only for a block of time such as an afternoon session, not a short break. Primary delegates must meet reserve delegates at a credentials table at the bar of the conference and exchange electronic voting cards to assure accurate voting, Rev. Graves said. Delegates will be trained on voting devices at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
There will also be in-depth training sessions for delegates from Central Conferences outside the United States, Rev. Graves said. Those briefings will take place in Africa, Europe, and the Philippines as well as in Minneapolis. The top executives of United Methodist boards and agencies, the Connectional Table and Central Conference bishops will provide training in addition to business manager Sara Hotchkiss and Rev. Graves.
Veteran General Conference delegates won’t get to skip school, either, Rev. Graves said. Orientation for all delegates, newcomers and old-timers alike, will take place the morning of May 5, first day of the conference.
“Everyone will need orientation because so much has changed,” Rev. Graves said.
The seating arrangement for delegates also has been changed to reduce the possibility of unauthorized persons casting ballots.
First, delegate seating will be returned to a classroom style of long tables all facing forward. This arrangement will enable the heads of delegations to keep a more accurate count of the voting representatives on the floor, since some delegations will require several tables, Rev. Graves said.
For the 2020 session, tables will be arranged like “a Tic-Tac-Toe” board or a hashtag mark, Rev. Graves said. There will be nine sections of delegate seating with more microphones to facilitate speakers. Delegates had been seated at round tables for the 2012, 2016 and 2019 sessions in an effort to foster deliberations. That scheme proved problematic at the 2019 session because it allowed for unauthorized voting.
And woe betide any photographers who try to get into the center of that hashtag to get pictures of their conferences’ delegates, communicators were warned in a breakout session. Credentialed media photographers will be permitted to circulate around the perimeter of the delegation section inside the bar of the conference, but not inside the hashtag section, said Mark Doyal, Michigan Annual Conference communications director and president of United Methodist Association of Communicators.
“If they catch you, you’ll not only lose your credentials, you'll be escorted from the building and that's the end of General Conference for you,” Doyal warned.
Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011.