Any of the participating cardinals could be named the next pope ― and technically, church rules state that any Catholic male is eligible for the role ― but only a handful of cardinals are ...

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Robert Prevost of the United States has been named the new pope, the new head of the Catholic church. Cardinals gathered to select their latest leader during a conclave.

The conclave later announced that Cardinal Robert F. Prevost was chosen as the new leader of the Catholic Church — which has around 1.4 billion members worldwide.

The day finished out around 9 p.m. local (3 p.m. ET) with billows of black smoke rising above the Vatican, indicating that the new head of the catholic church had not yet been chosen.

In an interesting turn of life somewhat imitating art, the new pope watched the film “Conclave” in the days just before being named the first American pontiff to lead the Catholic church.

Conclave Ending, Explained: What the Final Twist Means for the Catholic Church Conclave dealt with the difficult process of picking a pope, including unearthing scandals among potential candidates ...

The quickest conclave observing the 10-day wait rule appears to have been the 1503 election of Pope Julius II, who was elected in just a few hours, according to Vatican historian Ambrogio Piazzoni ...

That’s the question the Catholic Church is trying to answer as the conclave ended its first day without a decision on Wednesday. There are 133 Cardinals taking part in the conclave in Vatican City.

Pope Leo XIV appears on the central loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica after being chosen the 267th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church, at the Vatican, Thursday, May 8, 2025.

People around the world are waiting for the new pope to be selected. Monsignor Scott Friend of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church talked about how the church handles this process.

Here’s a look at the duration of conclaves in recent history, according to multiple sources including Catholic and other Italian publications: 1914: Benedict XV: 10 ballots, 3 days 1922: Pius XI ...