How Is a Prophet Chosen? How the Church of Jesus Christ Picks Its Next President

How it worksSeniority, then revelation, then sustaining

When the President of the Church dies, the First Presidency dissolves, and his counselors return to their places in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. The Twelve then lead the Church as a quorum. The Church’s newsroom describes it this way: “In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the prophet is chosen through a divinely inspired process. When the prophet passes away, the First Presidency is dissolved. The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, led by the longest-serving Apostle, assumes leadership, confirming the new prophet through revelation and priesthood authority” (Church Newsroom, Oct. 14, 2025).

In practice, the Twelve meet in the temple, the senior apostle (the one ordained an apostle longest ago) is sustained, ordained and set apart as President, and he calls his counselors. The whole Church then sustains them by raised hand in general conference. Nobody campaigns, nobody is nominated, and no outgoing prophet names an heir. Seniority is known in advance, and the Twelve confirm it by revelation. See What Is General Conference?.

The most recent example

President Russell M. Nelson died on September 27, 2025, at 101. For seventeen days the Quorum of the Twelve led the Church, with Dallin H. Oaks, the senior apostle, at its head. On October 14, 2025, President Oaks was set apart as the 18th President of the Church and called Henry B. Eyring and D. Todd Christofferson as his counselors, and Jeffrey R. Holland became President of the Quorum of the Twelve (Church Newsroom). President Oaks said, “I accept with humility the responsibility that God has placed upon me and commit my whole heart and soul to the service to which I’ve been called.”

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The BibleGod chooses; hands are laid on

The rule is old: “no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron” (Hebrews 5:4). When Moses’ ministry was ending, the Lord said, “Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; and set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation” (Numbers 27:18–23). The result: “Joshua … was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him” (Deuteronomy 34:9).

When Judas died, the apostles did not leave the seat empty. They required a witness of the Resurrection, and they prayed: “Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen.” Then Matthias “was numbered with the eleven apostles” (Acts 1:21–26). The quorum was meant to continue. Paul: “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets … Till we all come in the unity of the faith … That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:11–14). The Church is “built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone” (Ephesians 2:19–20), and “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets” (Amos 3:7).

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The Book of MormonTwelve in the Americas

The risen Christ organized His church among the Nephites the same way. He chose twelve and gave them “power and authority to baptize,” then told the multitude: “Blessed are ye if ye shall give heed unto the words of these twelve whom I have chosen from among you to minister unto you, and to be your servants” (3 Nephi 12:1). Authority passed by ordination. Alma, “having authority from God, ordained priests” (Mosiah 18:18), and the Nephite disciples “laid their hands upon them” to ordain priests and teachers, doing so “by the power of the Holy Ghost, which was in them” (Moroni 3:1–4). Alma adds that such men were “called and prepared from the foundation of the world according to the foreknowledge of God” (Alma 13:3). God knows whom He has prepared.

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The Doctrine and CovenantsWhy the Twelve can lead

Section 107 sets up the order. The First Presidency is “three Presiding High Priests, chosen by the body, appointed and ordained to that office, and upheld by the confidence, faith, and prayer of the church.” The Twelve are “special witnesses of the name of Christ in all the world,” and “they form a quorum, equal in authority and power to the three presidents previously mentioned” (D&C 107:22–24). That is why no gap in authority exists when a President dies. The quorum that is equal in authority leads until the Presidency is reorganized. The Twelve act “under the direction of the Presidency of the Church” while it exists, to “regulate all the affairs of the same in all nations” (D&C 107:33).

The President’s calling is “to preside over the whole church, and to be like unto Moses … to be a seer, a revelator, a translator, and a prophet, having all the gifts of God which he bestows upon the head of the church” (D&C 107:91–92). Only one man at a time holds that: “there is none other appointed unto you to receive commandments and revelations until he be taken, if he abide in me” (D&C 43:2–4). And the keys are given to the Twelve and the First Presidency “for the last days and for the last time” (D&C 112:30). So the members “shall give heed unto all his words … For his word ye shall receive, as if from mine own mouth” (D&C 21:4–5), because “whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same” (D&C 1:38).

It started in 1844

After Joseph Smith was killed in 1844, the Twelve, led by their President, Brigham Young (D&C 124:127), led the Church as a quorum. In 1847 the First Presidency was reorganized with Brigham Young as President. That pattern of the Twelve presiding, then the senior apostle becoming President, has governed every succession since. In the modern era the First Presidency is reorganized within days or weeks. See Who Was Brigham Young?.

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The Pearl of Great PriceCalled of God, by those in authority

The Articles of Faith state the principle and the structure: “We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof. We believe in the same organization that existed in the Primitive Church, namely, apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, evangelists, and so forth” (Articles of Faith 5–6). Abraham shows that the priesthood is passed down in order: “It was conferred upon me from the fathers; it came down from the fathers, from the beginning of time” (Abraham 1:3). That order runs from Adam through the fathers to the present. See What Is the Restoration of the Gospel?.

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Check the premiseThe presuppositions baked into the question

Before this question can be answered fairly, the person asking has to justify a few assumptions packed inside it:

1. That a church needs an election or a council vote to pick its leader. Scripture shows God choosing and authority passing by the laying on of hands (Numbers 27:18–23; Acts 1:24; Hebrews 5:4).
2. That apostles were meant to end with the first generation. The eleven filled Judas’s seat (Acts 1:26), and Paul says apostles and prophets are given “till we all come in the unity of the faith” (Ephesians 4:13).
3. That seniority is just a human rule. God prepares His servants over decades (Alma 13:3). Seniority means the man is known in advance, and the Twelve still confirm it by revelation.
4. That the prophet is infallible or worshipped. He is a man called to receive revelation for the Church (D&C 107:92). Latter-day Saints worship the Father in the name of the Son.

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FAQQuick answers

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Sources

• King James Bible (churchofjesuschrist.org): Numbers 27:18–23 · Deuteronomy 34:9 · Amos 3:7 · Acts 1:21–26 · Ephesians 2:19–20 · Ephesians 4:11–14 · Hebrews 5:4
• Book of Mormon: Mosiah 18:18 · Alma 13:3 · 3 Nephi 12:1 · Moroni 3:1–4
• Doctrine and Covenants: D&C 1:38 · D&C 21:4–5 · D&C 43:2–4 · D&C 107:22–24 · D&C 107:33 · D&C 107:91–92 · D&C 112:30 · D&C 124:127
• Pearl of Great Price: Articles of Faith 5–6 · Abraham 1:3
• “Dallin H. Oaks Named 18th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” Church Newsroom, Oct. 14, 2025

• Featured image and in-article graphic: original graphics by thebookofmormon.ai (painterly backgrounds; no photographs or likenesses of real people).