"Yes, there's disappointment that we haven't elected a new bishop, but on the other hand, the realistic view is that we weren't going to elect a bishop today. We anticipated it's going to take many ballots," said Ed Miller, member of Church of Our Savior in Gallatin and one of 127 lay delegates.

"It's clear from the numbers that there's a stalemate. There may be some movement, but there may not be. I don't know."

The delegates voted 14 times yesterday to select a winner from the four candidates, none of whom is from Nashville. The new leader will be the 11th bishop of the Diocese of Tennessee and will succeed the Right Rev. Bertram Nelson Herlong upon his retirement.

Many said yesterday that the clear split between the clergy and laity, which vote separately, was indicative of a divide within the Episcopal Church around the nation and the world.

In 2003, more than 20 branches of the global church broke off from the Episcopal Church USA after it approved the election of New Hampshire Bishop Gene Robinson, who's gay, and also authorized the blessing of same-sex unions.

"At this time we're a very divided diocese, and that has not been clearly acknowledged anywhere," said Donna Scott, a retired minister at Church of the Advent in Nashville.

"The new bishop should be someone who, in full acknowledgement of our differences, will be able to bring us all together."

At the end of the day, the Rev. Canon James B. Magness of the Diocese of Kentucky was the top vote getter among with clergy, with 44 of 85 votes. The Rev. Canon Neal O. Michell of the Diocese of Dallas was tops among lay delegates, getting 71 of 127 lay votes.

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