The man who first suggested his candidacy, Danny Akin, president of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina, told a reporter then that he believed Mr Luter would be elected “on merit, regardless of race or colour”.

首位推举他为候选人的是Danny Akin，北卡罗拉威客森林()南方浸信会神学院的院长，他告诉记者: 路特的当选是因为德才, 与种族肤色无关。