Louisville Archbishop Kurtz Easily Wins Election to Head U.S. Catholic Group

By Nathan Porter
The Washington Times
November 12, 2013

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/nov/12/louisville-archbishop-wins-election-catholic-group/

In an overwhelming victory, Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, Ky., was elected president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops at their leadership meeting Tuesday.

Archbishop Kurtz, 67, was ordained as a bishop in 1999, and archbishop in 2007 and has served as vice president of the USCCB for the last three years. He has also served as USCCB treasurer.

The first-ballot win — in a field of 10 candidates — was seen by some as a safe, traditional choice for the Conference, after the three-year leadership of the high-profile New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan. The choice was also being closely watched as a first sign of the American Catholic Church hierarchy’s reaction to the selection earlier this year of Pope Francis.

Archbishop Kurtz appointment does not come as a huge surprise to many within the USCCB and throughout the Catholic community — over the last five decades, every vice president that has run for president has been elected. The only exception to this trend was the new president’s predecessor, Cardinal Dolan.

Cardinal Dolan was seen as helping the American church rebound from sex-abuse scandals and directly address issues of poverty and immigration.

Archbishop Kurtz will officially begin his tenure as president on Thursday.