Pope Francis, who died on April 21 at age 88, has been laid to relaxation on the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Main in Rome. Now, the cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church start voting Wednesday for a successor in an meeting referred to as a conclave. Solely cardinals youthful than 80 years outdated are allowed to vote in a papal election. Whereas 135 cardinals are available in underneath the age requirement of 80 and thus are eligible to vote, two withdrew from the voting for well being causes, so 133 will vote.
The phrase “conclave” is acquainted to many non-Catholics now due to the Hollywood function movie Conclave, which was launched in 2024 and is obtainable to look at on streaming providers.
Learn extra: The place to Watch Conclave, the Vatican Thriller About Electing a New Pope
The way to observe the conclave
There isn’t any option to watch the true papal conclave, because it’s performed contained in the partitions of the Sistine Chapel and is non-public. The film, whereas entertaining and well-reviewed, is a fictional model. However the main information networks will likely be protecting any information concerning the occasion.
Maybe probably the most fascinating option to observe alongside is to tune in to the Vatican’s personal YouTube channel, which is streaming a reside webcam from St. Peter’s Sq. in Rome, the massive public sq. outdoors the Vatican buildings.Â
The information networks are additionally creating progressive methods for individuals to observe the conclave. NBC Information is providing a smoke cam, a webcam centered on the Sistine Chapel chimney the place white smoke will finally reveal when a pope has been chosen.
CNN has created a 3D visualization of what the conclave will appear to be.
USA Right this moment has arrange a YouTube channel to stream protection of the conclave, starting from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET (3 a.m. to six a.m. PT) on Wednesday.
CBS will broadcast a particular report on the conclave anchored by Norah O’Donnell and Tony Dokoupil, starting at 10:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday.
Who’re the contenders?
A number of cardinals are thought of potential sturdy candidates for the papacy. Cardinal Matteo Zuppi of Italy is famous for his diplomatic efforts and alignment with Pope Francis’ imaginative and prescient. Cardinal Luis Tagle from the Philippines can also be a distinguished determine, acknowledged for his advocacy for social justice and poverty alleviation. And Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana is being mentioned as a potential first African pope within the fashionable period.Â
Search for the white smoke
After the cardinals vote and their ballots are counted, the ballots are burned, and chemical substances are added to the flames to provide black smoke if there is no majority. When a brand new pope has been chosen, chemical substances will likely be added to the flames to provide white smoke. Crowds collect in St. Peter’s Sq. to look at for the outcomes.
Within the film, Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, who spearheads the election of the subsequent pope whereas investigating rumors about potential candidates. The movie relies on the 2016 novel by Robert Harris and is fictional — although it does symbolize a number of the occasions of how precise papal conclaves happen. In March, the movie received the Academy Award for greatest tailored screenplay.
The voting takes so long as it takes
Two-thirds of the cardinals’ votes are required to elect the subsequent pope. The conclave happens behind closed doorways, and the vote tally isn’t made public.
The conclave can take days and even weeks to conclude. Though within the thirteenth century, it reportedly took three years to decide on a pope, fashionable conclaves have been a lot shorter. Pope Francis was elected in 2013 on the fifth poll on the second day of the conclave.
There can solely be two rounds of voting per day, and a candidate wants two-thirds of the votes, plus one to be elected. If that majority is not reached after three days of voting, the method pauses so the cardinals can pray and focus on their choices, CBS Information stories.
No, Trump won’t be pope
Any man who’s a baptized Catholic can technically be elected pope, however in actuality, the subsequent pope is chosen from the School of Cardinals. Cardinals are senior members of the clergy and are chosen by the pope to function advisors to him.Â
Days earlier than Pope Francis’ funeral, US President Donald Trump advised reporters, apparently jokingly, “I would prefer to be pope.” However as a non-Catholic, Trump isn’t eligible to be pope.
Trump additionally shared an AI-generated picture of himself as pope on his Fact Social social media website final week. The official White Home account reposted the picture on X. Many didn’t discover the picture humorous.
“We simply buried our beloved Pope Francis and the cardinals are about to enter a solemn conclave to elect a brand new successor of St. Peter,” the New York State Catholic Convention wrote on X. “Don’t mock us.”
Trump’s vice chairman, JD Vance, wrote on X that he was OK with the picture of Trump as pope. Vance was not raised Catholic however was baptized into the religion in 2019. “As a basic rule, I am effective with individuals telling jokes,” Vance wrote.
