McElroy, known for a pastoral approach to migrants and the LGBTQ+ community, will take over an archdiocese still bruised by a sex and mismanagement scandal.

Cardinal Walter McElroy of San Diego is named by Pope Francis to replace the retiring Cardinal Wilton Gregory leading the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C.

Having led the San Diego diocese since 2015, McElroy, 70, has experience with immigration, both as a political issue and a reality in his diocesan churches.