Post 2020/2024 General Conference Delegate Numbers

by

Secretary of the General Conference

The United Methodist Church

Report date: September 17, 2024

The office of the Secretary of the General Conference offers the following post-General Conference update on the delegate seats filled at the 2020/2024 General Conference held April 23-May 3, 2024, at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.

With the 2020/2024 meeting concluded, after comparing the initial information to the attendance and travel records, the reporting of accurate and up-to-date data is now available. The data is in line with details shared in various reports from the chairpersons of the Commission on the General Conference and the Committee on Credentials. These reports, incorporating information from the General Conference office, showed at least four primary factors affected the travel of delegates:

  1. All information submitted must comply with Constitutional requirements to be accepted and processed. The lack of timely and accurate reporting from some annual and central conference secretaries presented obstacles.
  2. New and necessary identity verification procedures were implemented by the Commission on the General Conference at every step which impacted the timing and workflow of the process.
  • These safeguards proved successful as there were zero reports of instances of fraud or theft of identity related to delegates.
  1. The Commission discovered outside parties attempting to manipulate the system by issuing fraudulent letters of invitation to be used in the visa application process. This resulted in additional screenings to ensure validity of paperwork.
  2. The visa application timelines and policies of the United States Department of State were heeded and the decisions and processes were/are outside of the control of the church.

Ensuring representation of the 862 delegates at the 2020/2024 General Conference was a priority for the Commission. Special attention was provided to navigate visa-related processes for the 380 voting delegates from Africa, the Philippines and Europe/Eurasia. After ensuring upholding of the constitution and validity and accuracy of paperwork, 78% of General Conference delegates from outside the U.S. were able to travel to the gathering. This includes a 73% participation rate for delegates from annual conferences in the central conferences in Africa.

The following information provides a detailed view of the delegate representation at the event.

Understanding the data

  • Present — indicates the seat was filled by a primary General Conference delegate or an appropriately elected and certified reserve delegate who was credentialed and seated in order of election.
  • Absent — indicates the primary delegate was unable to attend and there was no appropriately elected and certified reserve delegate available from that particular annual conference.

View full report and data charts

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