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2025 conclave
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A conclave was held on 7 and 8 May 2025 to elect a new pope to succeed Francis, who had died on 21 April 2025. Of the 135 eligible cardinal electors, all but two attended. On the fourth ballot, the conclave elected Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, the prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. After accepting his election, he took the name Leo XIV.
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Papal election process
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The papal election process began soon after the death of Pope Francis on 21 April 2025. As in the 2013 conclave, the dean and vice-dean of the College of Cardinals were both over 80 and ineligible to participate. The most senior cardinal bishop under 80, Pietro Parolin, presided over the conclave.[1]
Timing and procedures
According to John Paul II's 1996 apostolic constitution Universi Dominici gregis, as amended by Benedict XVI's 2013 apostolic letter Normas nonnullas,[2][3] the cardinals had at least 15 days after the Holy See became vacant to convene. The cardinals had the discretion to start the conclave earlier or up to 20 days after the pope's cathedra became vacant.[2] On 28 April 2025, two days after Francis's funeral,[4] the fifth general congregation of the cardinals set the conclave to begin on 7 May 2025.[5][6]
Cardinal electors
Cardinals aged 80 years or older before the day the papacy fell vacant were ineligible to participate. After Francis's death, there were 252 cardinals, of whom 135 were under 80 and eligible to participate;[7] of the potential electors, 108 (80%) were appointed cardinals by Francis,[8][9] and were from more than 70 countries.[10]
Since the 1975 promulgation of Romano Pontifici eligendo by Pope Paul VI and Universi Dominici gregis by Pope John Paul II, the maximum number of cardinal electors had been set at 120.[11][12] At 133, the 2025 conclave was the largest ever,[13] and the first conclave where this number was exceeded on the day the papacy became vacant.[a][14] Any cardinal under the age of 80 not having renounced or lost his voting rights has the right to vote in a conclave under Catholic canon law. A pope appointing more than 120 eligible cardinal electors effectively renders the 1975 limit inapplicable,[15] as popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis all did;[14] although in the cases of John Paul II and Benedict XVI, the 120 limit at the conclave was not surpassed.[11]
On 30 April 2025, the general congregation of cardinals confirmed that all cardinal electors present for the conclave beginning on 7 May could vote.[16] Ineligible cardinals could nevertheless attend the general congregations and participate in discussions preceding the conclave.[17] Although the conclave cardinals have the authority to elect any Catholic male who has been baptized,[3] the last time a non-cardinal was elected was in the 1378 conclave.[18][19]
Non-participating
After saying he would try to participate in the conclave,[20] Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu of Italy, who had renounced his rights as a cardinal due to a financial scandal,[21] said he would abide by Francis's wish that he refrain from participating.[22] Health problems prevented cardinals Antonio Cañizares Llovera of Spain and John Njue of Kenya from participating in the conclave,[23] reducing the number of participants to 133; accordingly, the required two-thirds supermajority needed to elect a pope was 89 votes. This was the largest number of cardinal electors ever to participate in a conclave.[24]
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Speculation
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Francis's hospitalization in February and March 2025 fueled speculation about an impending conclave.[25] Due to the major international expansion of the membership of the College of Cardinals under Pope Francis to 252, with over 140 non-European cardinals appointed during his pontificate, some observers had suggested a non-European pope was likely.[7][15] The 2025 conclave was initially planned to have 135 electors from 71 countries; the 2013 and 2005 conclaves had had 115 electors from 48 and 52 countries respectively. Some of the participating cardinals did not speak Italian, the working language of the Roman Curia.[26]
Following the Italian saying "fat pope, thin pope", some commentators predicted that Francis's successor would be more conservative.[15][27] There were also concerns of interference, which had been prohibited in 1996 by John Paul II,[28] and a potential hostile takeover by ultraconservative politicians and Catholics.[29][30] As of the third and fourth general congregations, there was reportedly a desire among the cardinals for a ten-year pope, someone in his late seventies with experience in the Roman Curia who would be more focused on internal affairs.[31]
Some commentators posited a younger pope as more likely,[32] while others felt that cardinals like Pierbattista Pizzaballa and Robert Prevost were too young.[7][33][34] Many cardinals expressed hope for a short conclave, as in 2005 and 2013.[35] Given the complexities and heterogeneity of this conclave,[36] compared to the one that elected Pope Francis in two days in 2013,[37] Cardinal Rainer Woelki expected the 2025 conclave to take longer;[37] the Cardinals Louis Raphaël I Sako and Gregorio Rosa Chávez anticipated a short conclave of two or three days,[38][39] with the latter remarking "maximum three days".[40][41]
Papabili
Vaticanologists consider (by a variety of criteria) some cardinals to be more likely to become pope than others – these are the papabili (the plural for papabile), Italian for "pope-able".[42] In practice, however, conclaves have not always chosen one of the papabili. Prior to his election in the October 1978 conclave, John Paul II was not considered to be in the running.[43] This is reflected in the saying "He who enters the conclave as pope, leaves it as a cardinal,"[44] although the frontrunner is often elected pope, as was the case in 1939 (Pius XII), 1963 (Paul VI), and 2005 (Benedict XVI).[45] Anna Rowlands, a Vaticanologist, suggested that attempts to predict the conclave's outcome were based in "pure speculation".[46] Media worldwide released papabili analyses on the day of Pope Francis's death.[47] Papabili mentioned in the media included Anders Arborelius, Jean-Marc Aveline, Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, Timothy Dolan, Wim Eijk, Péter Erdő, Fernando Filoni, William Goh, Mario Grech, Claudio Gugerotti, Pietro Parolin, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Malcolm Ranjith, Robert Sarah, Marcello Semeraro, Luis Antonio Tagle, José Tolentino de Mendonça, Peter Turkson, Lazarus You Heung-sik, and Matteo Zuppi.[48][49][50]
Robert Prevost, the eventual elected pope, was speculated on as papabile,[51][52][53] being the prefect of the powerful Dicastery for Bishops,[54] an ally of Pope Francis, and a possible compromise candidate;[55][56] however, he was considered a dark horse,[49] and his American nationality had been regarded as a potential stumbling block to his candidacy, reflecting unease about enhancing the United States's geopolitical power after the re-election of Donald Trump in 2024.[49][57] Supporters argued that Prevost represented a "dignified middle of the road".[55] Some commentators felt that a non-European pope was likely due to the increased numbers of African and Asian cardinals,[7][15] which reportedly ultimately collapsed Parolin's candidacy.[50] By contrast, others felt that a European pope was a more likely outcome,[49] remaining convinced that the reasons for why an American pope had never been elected before, namely the American status as superpower,[58][59] still applied. James Bretzke, a theology professor at John Carroll University in Ohio, told USA Today that the best possible candidate was one who could be a diplomat, adding: "America's image in the world simply is too powerful – and to be blunt, ugly."[49]
Betting
Before the announcement of the conclave itself, prediction markets were using market mechanisms to calculate who might be in the running and their putative rankings.[60][61][62] Upon Francis's death, the top five contenders were Tagle, Parolin, Zuppi, Ambongo, and Erdő, all of which had been cited by Vatican journalists and analysts as papabili.[63] On the day of Prevost's election, the leading candidates on Polymarket were Parolin at 37%, Tagle at 26%, Pizzaballa at 10%, Erdő at 8%, Turkson at 7%, Sarah at 4%, and Zuppi at 3%. Parolin's odds to be named as the new pope jumped to nearly 70% after the white smoke was revealed, with many suspecting that the relatively short four-round conclave indicated a consensus candidate had been chosen.[64]
Fantapapa (Italian for 'Fantasy Pope') was a fantasy league based in Italy for betting nominal sums on papal conclaves. Established by anti-gambling advocates Pietro Pace and Mauro Vanetti specifically for the 2025 conclave,[65] the sole payout was "eternal glory". By 5 May 2025, it had 75,000 players in Italy, where no licensed platform offers gambling on conclaves.[66] Fantapapa players chose from and ranked eleven cardinals; other aspects of the conclave, such as the papal name, language, number of rounds, and the day on which white smoke appears, were also available to bet on. Players gained points in accordance to their team members being "mentioned prominently" in domestic and international media coverage. The fantasy league was open to punters internationally and also offered mini-lessons in the Italian language.[67]
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Pre-conclave events
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Logistical preparations
Following the death of Pope Francis, preparations began at Domus Sanctae Marthae for housing the cardinal electors. These included setting up barriers or opaque film at the windows to prevent outside contact and the construction of spaces for the celebration of the Sacrament of Penance, private prayer, and meals.[68][69] Signal jammers were used to isolate the electors from Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and mobile networks.[69][70][71] Because the building has only 129 bedrooms, it was necessary to provide accommodations for the 133 electors and support personnel,[72][73][74] who stayed at Santa Marta Vecchia, next door to the main dormitory.[75][76][77]
In the Sistine Chapel, preparations included the addition of tables and chairs in the manner of choir stalls and the covering of windows; the ballot-burning stove and the chimney, which together serve to signal the results to the outside world, were installed,[78][79] as was a temporary wooden floor which served to protect the marble inlay, provide a more level surface, and hide electronic signal jammers.[79][80] Both the Domus Sanctae Marthae and the Sistine Chapel were thoroughly inspected in advance of the conclave for any unauthorized devices.[69] On 2 May, Vatican firefighters installed the chimney for the Sistine Chapel.[81]
The Vatican Gendarmerie, under the leadership of Gianluca Gauzzi Broccoletti, faced many counter-espionage challenges in protecting conclave integrity.[26][69][71] The Corps of Gendarmerie used the 650 security cameras in the Vatican, encrypted messaging, and endpoint detection and response to secure the conclave.[71] Meals for the 2025 conclave featured simple dishes typical of Lazio and of Abruzzo, the regions of Italy nearest the Vatican.[82]
General congregations
According to Catholic canon law, general congregations are daily meetings of all cardinals regardless of elector status and begin before all of the elector cardinals arrive in Rome. The initial meetings are focused on the logistics of the papal funeral and the conclave, including physical preparations at the Domus Sanctae Marthae (as a dormitory) and the Sistine Chapel (as a polling place). Later ones, typically the eighth and following, shift to discussions about the needs of the church and the world, and the issues facing the Roman Curia.[83][84][85] These later general congregations are guided by the reflections given by two "distinguished and morally authoritative" clerics who are selected by the cardinals.[86] The cardinals are also given the opportunity to make formal remarks regarding the issues facing the church.[87] All of these speeches and discussions are termed interventi ("interventions") in Italian.[88] The general congregations meet in the New Synod Hall, on the first floor of the vestibule of the much larger Paul VI Audience Hall.[89][90] For the 2025 conclave, the general congregations met every day from 22 April following Francis's death until 6 May,[91] excluding 26–27 April,[92] 1 May,[93] and 4 May,[94] with the beginning of the conclave proper on 7 May.[95]
General congregations allow the cardinals to meet on their own initiative, thereby getting to know each other and exercise their spiritual discernment; many had never met,[96] as Francis did not hold meetings of cardinals before his papal consistories.[97][a] Furthermore, the cardinals have full access to global media and their diverse analyses and criteria for identifying the papabile.[98] Before leaving for Rome on 24 April, Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David stressed that a conclave is not a political campaign but a religious retreat. He also emphasized that it is a duty of the College of Cardinals to discern each other via prayer, personal letters, and even research on a website with biographical and other information set up for that purpose,[99] and that it is not a matter of candidates.[100] Both the formal and informal discussions are expected to be very substantive in preparation for, and in the hope of, a speedy conclave.[101][102] The discussions held at cardinals' own initiative—pratiche, or exercises—are the most frank and candid.[103] By canon law, the congregations are bound to the same secrecy as the conclave.[104]
Daily summary
On 22 April, members of the papal staff and household were asked to vacate their rooms at the Domus Sanctae Marthae following the death of Pope Francis in his suite on the second floor to allow for conclave preparations in that building to begin.[68] The same day, the first of twelve general congregations were held. At the first congregation, the approximately sixty cardinals present listened to Kevin Farrell, the Cardinal Camerlengo, read the will and testament of Pope Francis. The canonization of Carlo Acutis, originally scheduled to take place in Rome on 27 April, was suspended, and the cardinals confirmed the date for the papal funeral. This meeting also dealt with the logistics of the funeral.[105][106] The attending cardinals took the oath of secrecy concerning their meetings.[107] Despite the fact that general congregations are closed to non-cardinals, Sister Simona Brambilla, a religious sister and the first woman to head a Vatican department (the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life), was accidentally sent a standard email inviting her to participate.[108] On 23 April, the Vatican Museums announced the closure of the Sistine Chapel beginning on 28 April, due to the needs of the conclave.[109][110] At the second congregation, the program for the novendiales, or nine-day period of mourning for the deceased pope, was approved.[111] Norberto Rivera Carrera stated that the discussions were mostly procedural in nature, as many cardinals from around the world were still traveling.[112]
The third congregation on 24 April, with 113 cardinals present, saw the appointment of the two conclave preachers, Donato Ogliari and Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa.[113][114] At the fourth general congregation on 25 April, the 149 cardinals in attendance listened to a presentation on the funeral rite for Pope Francis.[115] By this time nearly 70 formal speeches, or "interventions", had been given.[116] There was also discussion concerning the status of Giovanni Angelo Becciu as a cardinal elector among the participants, which continued in the following congregations until his 29 April acceptance of his non-elector status.[21]
The fifth general congregation on 28 April decided that the conclave would begin on 7 May, 16 days after Pope Francis's death.[5][117] This meeting also discussed the clerical sexual abuse crisis, challenges in evangelization, and ecumenism. Twenty cardinals delivered interventions.[118] Conservative cardinals, such as Gerhard Müller and Francis Arinze (not an elector), were particularly vocal during this session.[119][120] The next day, at the sixth congregation on 29 April, the start time for the conclave was set at 4:30 p.m., and Cardinal Re was chosen as the celebrant for the opening Mass for the conclave.[121] Donato Ogliari gave his scheduled reflection to the 183 cardinals present, 124 of them being electors, and emphasized the theme of synodality from the Francis papacy.[119][121][122]
The seventh congregation on 30 April featured a discussion of the Vatican's financial issues by the 180 cardinals present, 124 of whom were electors.[123][124] Rainer Woelki stated that the meetings thus far had been "fraternal and cordial ... a very concentrated, calm, factual working atmosphere".[37] Beniamino Stella, not an elector, made a very strongly-worded critique of Francis's decision to allow lay persons to exercise powers of church governance formerly reserved to clergy. This surprised many cardinals, as Stella was viewed as one of Francis's most trusted advisors and a prominent supporter of Parolin.[125][126][127]
The general congregation did not meet on 1 May, the feast of Saint Joseph the Worker, a public holiday for the Holy See and an ecclesiastical counterpart to the secular International Workers' Day observed on the same day.[128] The National Catholic Reporter's Rome bureau reported that Prevost was "emerging as a serious frontrunner".[129] At the ninth congregation on 2 May, 177 cardinals were present, of whom 127 were electors. Twenty-six cardinals spoke. Among the subjects discussed were communion (koinonia) within the church and fraternity with the world, the hope that the next pope would be prophetic, and the 2025 Jubilee.[130] The tenth and eleventh congregations were both held on 5 May and discussed a wide range of church topics.[131][132] On 6 May, the twelfth and final congregation of the College of Cardinals took place.[133] This congregation marked the death of Pope Francis with the destruction of his fisherman's ring and lead seal. It was the first time either ritual was digitally recorded and made visible to the public.[133]
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Conclave
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Day one
On 7 May, the conclave began. It was preceded by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, celebrating the Mass pro eligendo Pontifice (lit. 'for the election of the Pontiff') in St. Peter's Basilica at 10 a.m. CEST (08:00 UTC).[134] All support staff, such as sacristans, medical staff, elevator operators, and the director of security services for the Vatican, along with officers and officials of the conclave, took their oath of secrecy on 5 May.[76][135] At 4:30 p.m., the papal conclave officially began with a prayer service in the Pauline Chapel, at the end of which the electors entered the Sistine Chapel in procession. Once there, the hymn Veni Creator Spiritus ("Come, Creator Spirit") was sung and the 133 voting cardinals then swore themselves to secrecy.[80][121][136] Each cardinal elector in order of seniority placed his hands on a Book of the Gospels and made the affirmation aloud in Latin.[137]
Et ego [prænomen] Cardinalis [nomen] spondeo, voveo ac iuro. Sic me Deus adiuvet et haec Sancta Dei Evangelia, quae manu mea tango.[138]
And I, [forename] Cardinal [surname], do so promise, pledge, and swear. So help me God and these Holy Gospels, which I touch with my hand.[137]
While making the oath, several cardinals used the Latin forms of their names.[139] Diego Ravelli, the papal master of ceremonies, then called out the words Extra omnes, a command for everyone who is not a cardinal elector to leave the chamber.[139] He then shut the entrance to the Sistine Chapel at 5:46 p.m.[136][139] Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa then offered a reflection to the cardinals following their procession into the conclave.[140] Reportedly, the remarks lasted for over an hour, delaying the start of the first ballot; at one point, Cardinal Parolin asked the other cardinal electors present if they wanted to postpone the first vote until the next morning.[141] Because the conclave began in the afternoon, only a single ballot was held on this day.[5] According to some reports, Parolin, the frontrunner, received more than 40 votes on the first ballot, while the rest of the field was considerably split.[50][142][143] According to other reports, Cardinal Prevost was the most voted candidate in the first ballot, slightly above Parolin, with Péter Erdő, one of the main conservative candidates, in third place.[144][145] The first day of the conclave ended at 9:00 p.m., after black smoke emerged from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, signifying that the vote had not resulted in the election of a new pope.[139] Vatican Media reported that up to 45,000 people gathered in St. Peter's Square.[146]
Day two
The second day of the conclave began with two ballots, concluding at approximately 10:30 a.m. and 11:45 a.m., respectively.[147] Black smoke appeared at 11:51 a.m., again signifying that no pope had been elected. Smoke is not necessarily produced after each ballot, as ballot cards from the two unsuccessful votes in a morning session or an afternoon session are usually burned together, producing smoke only at the end of each session.[148][149][150] According to several reports, Cardinal Pietro Parolin received 40 to 50 votes but failed to gain support from African and Asian cardinals, some of whom started to support Prevost; Pope Francis's strongest supporters were divided between Cardinals Jean-Marc Aveline and Mario Grech, while most Asian cardinals split their votes between Cardinals Luis Antonio Tagle and Pablo Virgilio David, both of whom were from the Philippines. Cardinal Prevost enjoyed broad support from South American and Anglosphere cardinals, thanks also to the strong support of Timothy Dolan, who acted as a kingmaker.[50][143][151] The cardinals then returned to the Domus Sanctae Marthae for lunch,[152] where the breadth of support for Prevost became clearer.[142][141]
By the end of the morning session, there were 15,000 people in St. Peter's Square and 5,000 people at the basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. More were expected during the afternoon session, since in the two most recent conclaves a new pope had been elected on either the fourth or fifth ballot.[153] After the lunch recess, the cardinals returned to the Sistine Chapel for the next round of votes.[152] The cardinals' support coalesced around Prevost, who received more than the two-thirds majority of 89 required, with more than 100 votes reported on the fourth ballot.[142][151][154] Parolin, as the most senior cardinal in the conclave, asked Prevost if he accepted and what his papal name would be. Having accepted his election, Prevost chose the papal name Leo XIV,[142] at least in part to honor Pope Leo XIII.[155][156] Following the pope's acceptance of his election, the cardinals applauded, and he embraced them. He exited the Sistine Chapel to the Room of Tears to be robed in the garments prepared there for the new pope.
After the fourth round of voting, white smoke appeared at 6:07 p.m., followed by the ringing of the bells of St. Peter's Basilica to signify the election of a new pope.[157][158][159] Soon afterwards, the Swiss Guard and members of the Italian Armed Forces, along with the bands of the Gendarmerie Corps of Vatican City State and the Carabinieri, paraded through St. Peter's Square and took up formation beneath the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica. From there, Cardinal Protodeacon Dominique Mamberti announced the election of Prevost[160] and his taking of the papal name Leo XIV.[161][162]
Leo XIV stepped onto the balcony shortly after the official announcement of his election, spoke to the crowd in St. Peter's Square and the world in Italian (while also briefly speaking in Peruvian Spanish to acknowledge the Diocese of Chiclayo), expressed gratitude for the legacy of Pope Francis,[163] and delivered the Urbi et Orbi blessing.[160] Immediately after the appearance of white smoke, 40,000 were present in St. Peter's Square;[164] according to Italian law enforcement, by the time of the habemus papam announcement, there were up to 150,000 in the square.[165]
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Post-conclave events
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The Holy See Press Office announced the schedule of activities and liturgical celebrations following the election of Pope Leo XIV.[166] He celebrated his first Mass as pope with the College of Cardinals in the Sistine Chapel at 11:00 am on 9 May 2025, the day after his election.[167] On 10 May 2025, he met the College of Cardinals in the Synod Hall.[168] In the morning of 11 May, he celebrated a private Mass at the Vatican Grottoes,[169] paying homage to his predecessors, before delivering his first Regina caeli address from the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica;[170] he broke the seals to the papal apartments of the Apostolic Palace right after the address, while being accompanied by Cardinals Pietro Parolin and Kevin Farrell.[171]
Pope Leo XIV celebrated his inauguration on 18 May 2025 at St. Peter's Square.[172] He took canonical possession of the three other major basilicas on 20 May (Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls) and 25 May (Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran and Basilica of St. Mary Major).[173] He had his first general audience on 21 May. On 24 May, he met the Roman Curia and the Vatican City State employees. On 31 May, he conferred his first presbyteral ordination as bishop of Rome to the priests of the Diocese of Rome.[174]
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