In a historic moment for the Roman Catholic Church, American Cardinal Robert Prevost has been elected the new pope, taking the name Pope Leo XIV. The announcement was made Thursday evening by a senior cardinal to an elated crowd in St. Peter’s Square.
The much-anticipated signal—white smoke billowing from the Sistine Chapel chimney—confirmed that a new pope had been chosen, while the bells of St. Peter’s Basilica rang out across Vatican City. The election concluded on the first full day of voting by the 133 cardinals participating in the conclave, which began Wednesday.
Excitement rippled through St. Peter’s Square as thousands of faithful and visitors cheered and applauded when the white smoke appeared, marking the end of the secretive voting process inside the Sistine Chapel.
Pope Leo XIV is expected to step onto the central balcony shortly to deliver his first public blessing and address the gathered crowd.
This election follows the passing of Pope Francis on April 21, ending his 12-year papacy. Pope Francis was known for his efforts to modernize the Church, pushing forward reforms and encouraging dialogue on controversial topics, including the role of women in the Church and LGBTQ+ inclusion.
In the lead-up to the conclave, several names were floated as possible successors, including Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, France’s Jean-Marc Aveline, Hungary’s Peter Erdo, Italy’s Pierbattista Pizzaballa, and Filipino Bishop Pablo Virgilio David. However, Cardinal Prevost emerged as the surprise choice.
The conclave followed centuries-old traditions, with the cardinals cut off from the outside world—no phones, no computers, and sworn to strict secrecy. They were shuttled between their Vatican residences and the Sistine Chapel for voting sessions, with only the color of the smoke informing the public of progress: black for no decision, white for a new pope.
It typically takes several rounds of ballots to elect a pope, with the past 10 conclaves averaging about seven votes. This time, the decision came relatively swiftly, with white smoke appearing after the cardinals’ third vote on Thursday.
With the election of Pope Leo XIV, the world now turns its eyes to what vision and direction the new pontiff will bring to the Church’s 1.4 billion followers.
