The papal choice resembles how decisions were made in Europe about00 years ago.
This was before the chosen monarchies were replaced by hereditary monarchies, according to Bruce Bueno de Mesquita, a professor of politics at the University of New York.
The cardinals are bishops and officials of the Vatican worldwide, personally chosen by the Pope and recognizable by their distinctive red clothes.
Only cardinals under 80 are eligible to vote in a conclave: they are known as cardinal voters and their number is limited to 120.
Women are prohibited by the priesthood and, therefore, of becoming a Pope, the Catholic Church, with the prohibition based on the belief that Jesus only chose men to be their apostles.
For the conclave, the voters process the Sistine Chapel and practice an oath of absolute secret before sealing the doors.
The unofficial term for possible candidates is Daddabile.
How the ballot works when choosing a new Pope
Christ is risen! These words capture all the meaning of our existence, since we were not made for death but for life. # https://t.co/s8d2O4WCFV
– Pope Francis (@pontifex) April 20, 2025
Four voting rounds are taken every day until a candidate receives two thirds of the vote: the votes are held secret.
The result of each ballot is counted aloud and records three cardinals.
If no one is recessive the necessary two thirds of the vote, the ballots are burned in a stove near the chapel with a mixture of chemicals to produce black smoke.
The process can go to multiple rounds with the same people theoretically obtaining the same number of votes every time the cardinals expect to see who loses support first.
But slowly, the cardinals who voted for someone who only received a very small number of votes will probably add their vote to one of the strongest candidates in the next round.
When a cardinal receives the two -thirds vote necessary, the dean of the Faculty of Cardinals asks if he accepts his choice.
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If you accept, choose a papal name and are dressed in papal clothes before processing the balcony of the Basilica of San Pedro.
The final round tickets burn with chemicals that produce white smoke to indicate to the world the choice of a new Pope.
The Senior cardinal deacon announces from the balcony of “Habemus Papam” of San Pedro (“We have a Pope”) before the new Pope proceeded and imparts his blessing in the city of Rome and the world.
How many cardinals are there?
Within the Cardinals College, there are 252 cardinals (as of April 19, 2025), or that 135 are eligible to vote in a conclave to choose a new Pope.
