North Georgia elects clergy and lay delegates to the 2028 General Conference and the Southeastern Jurisdictional Conference at this session — one of the marquee items of business alongside the Georgia Unification Plan. Who may vote on which ballot is set by the Book of Discipline and shown on each member's name badge.
The bar of the conference
There are seven name-badge styles. The badge lists the member's name and shows their voice-and-vote status for both the Annual Conference (AC) and the Clergy Executive Session (CES). "Within the bar of the conference" simply means seated as a voting (or non-voting) participant.
- Red — voice and vote on all matters at AC. Local-church lay members, district at-large (equalization) lay members, diaconal ministers, active deaconesses and home missioners under episcopal appointment, and members by virtue of a current conference or district position (¶¶32–33, 251.1). (Lay members of the Board of Ordained Ministry also vote at the Clergy Executive Session.)
- Dark Blue — voice and vote on all matters at AC and CES. Deacons and elders in full connection, active or retired, and clergy in eligible leave categories (¶¶329.2, 334.1, 351–356).
- Light Purple — voice and vote at AC and CES except General and jurisdictional delegate ballots. Full-connection clergy on involuntary leave of absence (¶354.8).
- Green — voice and vote at AC and CES, including the election of clergy delegates, except constitutional amendments and matters of ordination and clergy character/conference relations; not themselves eligible to be elected as delegates. Provisional members who have completed their educational requirements, and qualifying local pastors who have completed Course of Study or an M.Div. and served two consecutive years under appointment (¶¶35, 316.6, 327.2). Associate members also vote here.
- Orange — voice and vote at AC and CES except delegate ballots, constitutional amendments, and clergy character matters. Provisional members who have not completed their educational requirements, and local pastors who do not meet the Green-bar criteria (¶¶316.6, 327.2).
- Yellow — voice only, no vote. Retired local pastors not serving an appointment, and clergy of another denomination serving an appointment (¶¶320.5c, 346.2, 359.2, 360.3).
- Gray — no voice or vote. Affiliate members (voice without vote, ¶344.4), clergy from other conferences serving in North Georgia, honorably or administratively located clergy, unappointed candidates and local pastors, lay supply pastors, reserve lay members, and visitors and guests.
On the delegate ballots
The distinctions above matter most on the General and jurisdictional delegate ballots: full clergy members and lay members vote, but several categories (Light Purple, Orange, Yellow, Gray) are barred from those particular ballots even when they may vote on everything else. Clergy delegates are elected by clergy members in full connection; lay delegates are elected by the lay members. The slate of board nominations (separate from delegate elections) comes from the Committee on Nominations — see those rosters on each agency page.