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Laura Barbins was reelected June 6 to serve a second six-year term as bishop of the Northeastern Ohio Synod. The election took place during the synod assembly, June 5-6 at the John S. Knight Center in Akron, Ohio.
The bishop was reelected on the fourth ballot, with 149 votes. The Rev. Jessica Shields, pastor of Peace Lutheran Church in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, received 54 votes. A total of 146 votes was needed for election.
Barbins has served as the synod’s bishop since 2020. She served as pastor of Celebration Lutheran Church in Chardon, Ohio, from 2001 to 2020 and as adjunct faculty at Trinity Lutheran Seminary at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio, from 2018 to 2020. Trinity is one of seven ELCA seminaries. Barbins served as interim pastor of Messiah Lutheran Church in Fairview Park, Ohio, from 1999 to 2000 and as associate pastor for youth at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Nashville, Tenn., from 1995 to 1997.
