Paul D. Erickson, Milwaukee, was reelected May 21 to a six-year term as bishop of the Greater Milwaukee Synod of the ELCA. The election was held during the synod assembly, May 20-21 at the Italian Community Center in Milwaukee. The assembly was also available online.
The bishop was reelected on the fifth ballot, with 215 votes to 100 votes for Michelle Townsend de Lopez, pastor of Cross Lutheran Church in Milwaukee. A total of 158 votes was needed for election.
Prior to becoming bishop, Erickson served as director of Agora, a ministry helping to develop lay leaders for immigrant and multicultural congregations in Minnesota and South Dakota, in St. Paul, Minn., from 2014 to 2016. He served as assistant to the bishop for evangelical mission in the Saint Paul Area Synod from 2008 to 2014.
