The 2025 conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV

The cardinals who would choose Francis's successor were unusually diverse. Francis had named cardinals from countries that had never had one before, which left the outcome uncertain.^[8] In the end, 133 cardinals from 71 countries convened.^[9] Cardinal Angelo Becciu, who had been convicted by the Vatican of embezzlement and fraud and was appealing, said he would not take part.^[10][11] Interest in the process drove viewers to "Conclave," a political thriller about a papal election.^[12] Before the vote, President Donald Trump drew criticism from Catholic leaders in the United States for sharing an AI-generated image of himself dressed as pope.^[13]

The Vatican prepared the Sistine Chapel for the vote. It closed the chapel to the public, installed a chimney on its roof and a stove inside for burning the ballots,^[14][15][4] and swore its support staff, from cooks to elevator operators, to secrecy under threat of automatic excommunication.^[16] On May 7, after the cry of "extra omnes," Latin for "all out," the chapel doors closed and voting began.^[17] Black smoke after the first ballot signaled that no pope had been chosen.^[18][19] White smoke rose the next day.^[20]

Leo XIV began setting out his papacy within days. He celebrated his first Mass as pope in the Sistine Chapel with the cardinals the day after his election.^[21] He told the cardinals he had chosen his name as a commitment to the church's social teaching amid a new revolution in artificial intelligence, which he identified as one of the main challenges facing humanity, and he held up Francis's legacy as one to follow.^[22][23] About 200,000 people attended his inaugural Mass, including Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky,^[3] and on May 25 he was installed as bishop of Rome at the Basilica of St. John Lateran, declaring, "I am Roman!"^[24] State voting records showed he had voted in three Republican primaries since 2012,^[25] and his election raised the question of whether a U.S. citizen could remain one as a foreign head of state.^[26]