Bishops of Limassol, Paphos and Tamassos form triumvirate for the next archbishop

Bishop Athanasios of Limassol secured the lead in Sunday’s electoral process for the new archbishop, and is followed by Bishop Georgios of Paphos and Bishop Isaiah of Tamassos and Orini, with the three of them forming the triumvirate that will be brought before to the Holy Synod when choosing the next Primate of the Church of Cyprus.

Chief Returning Officer, Yiannis Harilaou, stated that the final results, with 100 per cent of the votes counted, were as follows: Bishop of Limassol Athanasios secured 35.68 per cent of the vote, Giorgios of Paphos 18.39, Isaiah of Tamassos and Orini 18.10, Vassilios of Famagusta Vasilios 14.79, Neophytos of Morphou 9.80 and Chrysostomos of Kyrenia 3.24.

The election process started Sunday morning at 10 am and polls closed at 6 pm.

Harilaou stated that the total turnout was 30.2 per cent of eligible voters, noting that 165,750 out of 548,793 voters cast their votes.

He noted that the turnout in the Archbishopric was 26.17 per cent with 35,006 voters out of a total of 133,768; in Paphos, 34.79 with 20,902 voters out of 60,073; in Kition, 23.04 with 18,239 voters out of 79,154; in Kyrenia, 32.19 with 1,222 voters out of 3,796; and in Limassol 30.57 with 45,162 voters out of 147,736.

The chief returning officer added that the turnout in Morphou was 33.56 per cent with 5,971 voters out of 17,790; in Constantia-Famagusta 43.38 with 14,450 voters out of 33,313; in Kykkos 47.90 with 856 voters out of 1,787; in Tamasos 35.74 with 15,062 voters out of 42,146; and in Trimythounta 30.38 with 8,880 voters out of 29,230.

The peoples’ verdict needs to be be respected, said Bishop Athanasios of Limassol in his statements, while thanking God and the people for the result in the elections. Asked if he is going to enter into consultations with other members of the Holy Synod he said that there will be some consultations in the spirit of cooperation, but nothing more.

Bishop Georgios of Paphos said that “there is no first or second” when forming the triumvirate since people vote their top three choices and then the members of the Holy Synod choose as the next archbishop the one who is deemed to be most suitable.

Bishop Isaiah of Tamassos and Orinis said that this was the most peaceful election ever held in the Church of Cyprus, adding that the inclusion of a new bishop in the triumvirate shows that the voice of young people was heard at the end.

Bishop of Constantia and Famagusta, Vassilios said the result of the vote is completely respected and “we accept it.”