Business Sessions Begin with Key Elections and Reports
General Council business sessions began on Wednesday afternoon, starting with several executive leadership and executive presbytery elections and ending in reports from executive leadership. The 61st gathering of the Fellowship saw total registration numbers of over 20,000, 4,163 of which were voting members.
ELECTIONS
Doug Clay was re-elected general superintendent on the first nominating ballot.
Nominations for the office of general superintendent come from the floor. Any ordained Assemblies of God minister is eligible. To be elected, a candidate must receive a two-thirds majority. Executive leadership positions are voted on every four years at General Council.
Clay was elected as the general superintendent of the General Council of the Assemblies of God in 2017, following a nine-year term as the general treasurer. In addition to his current role, Clay is also the vice chairman for the World Assemblies of God Fellowship.
Prior to joining the AG executive leadership team, Clay served as the district superintendent of the Ohio Ministry Network, the senior pastor of Toledo Calvary Assembly of God (now Calvary Church), the AG’s national youth director, and the Ohio Ministry Network’s district youth director.
Following his election, Clay addressed the body, humbly thanking them for their support, and vowing to serve with the same tenacity as his past years in office.
Clay then moved into the election of the general treasurer, a position currently held by Rick Ross. General Secretary Donna Barrett explained that the general presbytery serves as the nominating committee for potential candidates, presenting names of qualified candidates to the general council for voting. Voters were asked to cast a yes or no ballot for returning Ross to office.
Ross exceeded the two-thirds threshold needed for election on the first electoral ballot.
The Executive Presbytery appointed Ross to fill the unexpired term of general treasurer in 2024. Prior to joining the AG national office, Ross served as superintendent of the North Carolina Assemblies of God (2016-2024) and as the Southeast area executive presbyter (2019-2024).
Ross, joined by his wife Susan on stage, acknowledged his family’s legacy in the AG and expressed his gratitude to the Fellowship for his re-election.
Wilfredo “Choco” De Jesús was returned to the office of executive director of AG U.S. Missions on the first electoral ballot.
De Jesús was appointed U.S. Missions director in 2024 by the executive presbytery, following five years as general treasurer for the AG. Prior to his election as general treasurer, De Jesús led New Life Covenant Church in Chicago for nearly two decades. When he joined the executive leadership team, he became the first Latino to serve the Fellowship in that capacity.
Following his election, De Jesús and his wife, Elizabeth, extended deep gratitude and commented, “We consider it an honor to serve our missionaries across the seven ministries of U.S. Missions.”
Executive presbytery (EP) elections followed immediately after executive leadership elections, voting in eight non-resident general presbyters from various regions. Donald E. Ross, superintendent of the Northwest Ministry Network, was elected as the non-resident EP for the Northwest area. Richard M. Guerra, SoCal Network’s superintendent, was re-elected as the non-resident EP for the Southwest area. Rob Ketterling, lead pastor of River Valley Church, was re-elected as the non-resident EP for the North Central area, and Darryl E. Wootton, Oklahoma Network’s superintendent, was elected as the non-resident EP for the South Central area.
Darnell K. Williams, president of North Central University, was elected as the Ethnic Fellowship EP. The position of non-resident EP for the West Spanish language area was filled by Marciela H. Hernández, incumbent, and current secretary/treasurer of the Texas Gulf Hispanic District, and the two additional representation EP positions, Ordained African-American Minister and Ordained Minister Under 40, were filled by Samuel Huddleston, assistant superintendent of the Northern California and Nevada District, and Mike Santiago, incumbent, pastor of Focus Church in North Carolina.
REPORTS
Wednesday's business session also included reports from executive leaders. Barrett, De Jesus, and AGWM Executive Director John Easter offered reports detailing updates from their respective areas with special attention given to summaries and updates related to AG World Missions and Chi Alpha.
The business session concluded with a report from Assistant General Superintendent Rick DuBose, who shared two areas of focus for the coming years, a new emphasis on prayer and an increased emphasis on discipleship.
DuBose shared encouraging updates about the AG World Prayer Center, citing that 17 prayer directors had been appointed and are facilitating approximately 10 prayer groups each week, averaging 75-100 participants. He also announced a nationwide call to prayer, a historic endeavor for the fellowship that will be taking place on July 4, 2026, the year America celebrates its 250th birthday.
“You have to believe in prayer enough to make it a priority, and through that we will reach America and the world,” he said. “We are believing for revival for every AG church, for the greatest spiritual renewal ever seen anywhere in the world.”
DuBose concluded by highlighting several encouraging statistics about discipleship ministries which included 12,000 salvation decisions and 13,000 Holy Spirit baptisms at AG kids and youth camps last year. He also reported record giving years for Light for the Lost and AG Women’s global missions focus, as well as monthly growth in the thousands of unique account users for the Bible Engagement Project’s curriculum.
