Looks like they doomed themselves by calling the wrong kind of ministers. Were they limited to calling ministers who were ordained in the UCC? (I know some churches accept ministers from other denominations.). If so, then maybe their choices were limited.
Where I grew up in southwestern Illinois, there are lots of old E&R churches in small towns. One of the larger and older ones left the UCC a few years ago. I checked their website and they seem solid as a rock theologically.
That’s a good question, and I have no idea. It very well could be a local church-by-chruch basis as the local congregation makes the decision on who to hire by a simple majority vote.
As a example, one near me was looking for a new minister and basically said all are welcome to apply, however we will only pick a openly gay one.