Indiana Conference approves five proposed constitutional amendments

Five of the 32 proposed amendments to the United Methodist Church Constitution were approved by the Indiana Conference votes received this past Friday, June 26, at Muncie. A total of 1,257 ballots were cast, according to Conference Secretary Carolyn Johnson. All of the votes will be added to the individual votes from all the annual conferences.

Those receiving the required 2/3 or above votes in Indiana included proposed amendments:

II.	Conflict of Interest – 1071 affirmative votes
VIII.	Gender – 1113 affirmative votes
IX.	Jurisdictional Conference Membership – 1040 affirmative votes
XIX.	Voting Eligibility – 1087 affirmative votes
XXII.	Bermuda – 1127 affirmative votes

All of these proposed amendments were passed in Indiana with an 82 percent or above approval. No other proposed amendments received more than 52 percent of the vote. None of the Global Nature of the Church proposed amendments received a 2/3 majority vote in Indiana. A complete tally and short description is available here.

All constitutional amendments must be approved by a two-thirds vote of the total number of voting members of all annual conferences worldwide. The Council of Bishops is expected to announce the results during its 2010 spring meeting.