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Vatican Conclave Starts with 133 Cardinals to Elect Successor to Pope Francis

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Published May 7, 2025, 09:46 AM

All 133 Roman Catholic cardinals eligible to vote for the next pontiff have arrived in Rome and attended a "Pro eligendo Pontifice" Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on Wednesday, ahead of the conclave that begins later in the afternoon. The Vatican confirmed that the entire College of cardinal-electors, all under the age of 80, is present for the deliberations inside the Sistine Chapel.

Once inside the chapel, the cardinals will be secluded from the outside world and will cast successive secret ballots until one of them secures the required two-thirds majority—at least 89 votes. Smoke signals from a chimney, black for inconclusive rounds and white for a successful election, will notify the public when the 267th pope has been chosen. With members drawn from about 70 countries, this is the most geographically diverse conclave in the Church’s history.

The gathering follows the death of Pope Francis on April 21 and takes place at a moment of heightened attention to the future direction of the 1.4 billion-member Church. Vatican officials say the procedure could be relatively swift but caution that balloting may continue for several days if consensus proves elusive.

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#Roman Catholic #Rome #Pro eligendo Pontifice #Mass #Vatican #College #Sistine Chapel #Church #Francis

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Sources

twitter.com(6)abcnews.go.com(4)france24.com(3)bfmtv.com(3)

KBC Channel 1 News

@KBCChannel1

CONCLAVE BEGINS Cardinals have entered St. Peter’s Basilica to celebrate a final Mass before the conclave to elect the next pope. The Mass precedes the secretive and ritual-filled process to find a new leader of the Catholic Church following the novel pontificate of Pope Francis https://t.co/al7tiE0G7N

Rádio CBN

@CBNoficial

The opening mass of the Conclave that will elect Pope Francis' successor began this Wednesday morning (7) in St. Peter's Basilica. #NoArNaCBN https://t.co/T6cYTy1zNL

IOL News

@IOL

Following Pope Francis’ death, cardinals are summoned to Rome for a papal conclave – an elaborate and highly secretive ballot process to elect the new spiritual leader for the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics. https://t.co/B6usLeWW7E https://t.co/SA0PugjVhY

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