The Rev. Amiri Hooker answers questions about the voting resolution at the South Carolina Annual Conference's 2026 session. (Photo by Matt Brodie)
South Carolina Advocate | July 8, 2025
GREENVILLE—South Carolina United Methodists overwhelmingly voted to pass a resolution protecting voting rights, democratic participation and equal representation.
Proposed by the Advocacy Area of Connectional Ministries, the resolution calls on the conference to affirm voting rights as a moral and biblical issue and to encourage churches and leaders to actively support voter access, civic engagement and equal political representation, particularly for historically marginalized communities.
Before considering the resolution, which was shared during the Connectional Ministries report, the Rev. Millie Nelson Smith noted that first the body must decide whether to suspend two Standing Rules (29 and 64B), which the body voted to do.
While several asked clarification questions about the resolution, no one spoke in opposition to the resolution, while two spoke in support.
One of those, the Rev. David Washington of Old Bethel United Methodist Church, Charleston, noted, “We’ve been down this road before.”
“When actions don’t line up with the words being spoken, I have to choose history,” Washington said. “Anytime anything attacks voting rights, we should stand up so every voice should be heard in this country.”
The resolution passed overwhelmingly.
Also during the Connectional Ministries report, Smith noted two other resolutions that had been submitted to Annual Conference but referred to their office have been accepted, and the work they called for will be incorporated into the ongoing work of Connectional Ministries. Those resolutions are the Resolution to Develop and Expand Campus Ministry in the South Carolina Annual Conference and the Resolution to Develop and Expand Ministries with Young Adults.