The U.S. bishops’ conference has elected its next president, Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City.
Archbishop Coakley was elected by a narrow margin – 54 percent, or 128 votes out of 237 – in a third-ballot runoff against Bishop Daniel E. Flores of Brownsville, Texas, who subsequently was elected vice president of the conference on the first ballot, a fraction of a percent over the majority.
Archbishop Coakley’s election signals that an unspoken but regularly respected principle of seniority has yet again been a deciding factor of the bishops’ election. While some observers pondered what effect Pope Leo might have on the election, it would appear that the adherence to custom and respect for experience that Pope Leo has expressed to-date might stick out as more prevalent than anything else.
Archbishop Coakley, a bishop since 2004, possessed the combination of length of service as a bishop and higher rank as archbishop. He served as bishop of Salina for six years ahead of his appointment to the Oklahoma capital city in 2010.
Archbishop Coakley has long been a leader within the bishops’ conference, and he has been a member of many committees. Then-bishops’ conference president Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz appointed Archbishop Coakley to serve as chairman of the Catholic Relief Services board of directors in 2013, a position he held until 2016. In 2018, Archbishop Coakley was elected to a three-year term as chairman of the conference’s Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development. He is currently a member of the Committee on Divine Worship.
After Archbishop Broglio was elected president in 2022, Archbishop Coakley twice has been elected to serve as secretary, first to fulfill Archbishop Broglio’s term, then to a term in his own right, which was to conclude 2027.
As conference secretary, Archbishop Coakley serves as chairman of the Committee on Priorities and Plans, which shapes and guides the conference’s strategic goals and is responsible for implementing its long-term vision. It was during the tenures of both Archbishop Broglio and Archbishop Coakley in this position that they became heirs apparent to conference presidency, since the tradition of elevating the outgoing vice president to the top position has been stalled by the election of two back-to-back vice presidents who were ineligible to stand for office due to age restrictions.
Archbishop Coakley’s tenure as archbishop in the Oklahoma Bible Belt has seen a slight increase in Catholic population, despite a slight decrease in the overall population within his archdiocese. He also is regarded as a clear expositor of Catholic doctrine and morality.
In a state that has the death penalty, Archbishop Coakley has been vocal in supporting alternatives and advocating against its use. In defense of life, he has been unafraid to speak out against abortion, particularly when it comes to political supporters within the Church.
He is also on the record supporting the bishops’ longstanding view that opposition to abortion is a “preeminent” issue for Americans to consider when forming consciences to vote in elections.
After arriving in Oklahoma City, Archbishop Coakley took the reins of the cause of canonization of Stanley Rother, an Oklahoma priest martyred in Guatemala in 1981. Archbishop Coakley has dedicated himself to promoting and preserving Rother’s rich legacy of pastoral charity and missionary zeal.
Looking ahead, custom now positions Bishop Flores of Brownsville, a close runner-up to Archbishop Coakley, to be frontrunner for the USCCB presidency in three years.
A bishop since 2006, Bishop Flores served previously as an auxiliary in Detroit from 2006 to 2009. He ranked third in seniority on the ballot for top conference officers.
A Thomist by training, Bishop Flores is a regular speaker at a variety of events and conferences – including as a regular homilist at USCCB events – invitations that speak to his broad appeal and wide-ranging talents.
Located on the U.S.-Mexico border, Bishop Flores is well-positioned to be able to offer a strong voice in support of the pastoral care of migrants now on the national level. Bishop Flores also has experience helping the Church engage with and implement the synodal path, as he oversaw the synod process in recent years on behalf of the USCCB, as well as in the continental synodal process and in the two Synods on Synodality in Rome.
