Let the voting – and prayers – begin. One hundred and thirty-three Roman Catholic cardinals from 66 countries gathered for Mass on Wednesday morning before the start of a conclave to elect a successor to Pope Francis now underway behind the Vatican’s walls.
Of the sequestered churchmen, 52 hail from Europe, 23 Asia, 17 South or Central America, 17 Africa, 20 North America, and four Oceania.
The process began in Rome at 4:30 p.m. local time after the cardinals walked solemnly into the frescoed Sistine Chapel, chanting the meditative “Litany of the Saints” and the Latin hymn “Veni Creator.”
After the assembled cardinals take their oaths, a senior cardinal delivers a meditation, but the conclave does not officially begin until the master of papal liturgical ceremonies calls out “Extra omnes,” Latin for “all out” and the doors slammed closed.
AP reports on the process that happens next:
- The College of Cardinals […] will be sequestered inside the Vatican to pray, discern and vote for the next pope without distraction. They will host their first and only vote of the day this evening in the Sistine Chapel.
- A two-thirds majority is required for a new pope to be elected. Voting sessions on subsequent days, should they be needed, will occur regularly in the morning and afternoon until a pope is selected.
- Smoke watch: After voting, ballots are burned in a special stove — black smoke signals no decision, while white smoke means a new pope has been chosen. Smoke is expected to rise from the Vatican chimney around 7 p.m.
If no clear winner emerges in the initial ballot, the cardinals will vote four times a day, twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon, until a majority emerges.
As dictated by tradition, the new pope will need a two-thirds majority. With 133 in the room, 89 cardinals must write his name on their secret ballot papers.
Cardinals attend a mass for the election of the Roman Pontiff, prior to the start of the conclave, at St Peter’s Basilica on May 07, 2025 in Vatican City. (Photo by Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty)
Cardinals of the Catholic Church have descended on Vatican City to commence the papal conclave, the secretive voting process held in the Sistine Chapel that requires a two-thirds majority to elect the new leader of the Catholic Church. The election follows the death of Pope Francis on April 21 at the age of 88. (Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images)
Catholic faithful attend a mass for the election of the Roman Pontiff, prior to the start of the conclave, at St Peter’s Basilica on May 7, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican. (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
AFP notes in practice, the previous two – the 2005 election of Benedict XVI and of Francis in 2013 – lasted two days.
In the 20th and 21st centuries, conclaves have never lasted longer than five days, as was the case for Pope Pius XI’s election in 1922, which required 14 ballots.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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