St. Olaf's Rev. Ann Svennungsen Minnesota's First Female Bishop

In a historic vote, Minneapolis-area Lutherans on Saturday elected Rev. Ann Svennungsen as their new bishop.

Svennungsen, interim pastor at St. Olaf College, is the first woman to lead the Minneapolis Area Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, which has 192,000 baptized members, according to WCCO.

"The Minneapolis synod is very diverse ... a forward-thinking, forward-looking synod, and I think this reflects that," Svennungsen said after the vote, according to the Star Tribune. "I have a strong belief that leadership of the church needs to reflect the membership of the church. I think we're healthier and stronger when that happens. I'm so honored and humbled to be serving as the bishop." 

There were 18 candidates for bishop: six female pastors, one black male pastor and 11 white male pastors. The list grew to 46 nominees when nominations were taken at the assembly.

The final two came down to Svennungsen and Rev. Kelly Chatman, who would have been the first black pastor elected synod bishop in Minnesota. Svennungsen received 339 votes; Chatman received 317 votes. 

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