History was made in Rome as Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, a 69-year-old from Chicago, was elected the 267th pope of the Roman Catholic Church, choosing the name Pope Leo XIV.
A Surprise Selection by the Conclave
The white smoke rising from the Sistine Chapel chimney signaled to the world that a new pope had been elected. The decision came on the second day of the papal conclave, as 133 cardinals from around the world cast their votes.
Prevost, who wasn’t among the most frequently mentioned contenders to succeed Pope Francis—who passed away on April 21—emerged as a surprise selection.
Pope Leo XIV is the First American Pope
Cardinal Prevost becomes the first-ever pope born in the United States, and he brings with him a multicultural background. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, he spent much of his ecclesiastical career in Peru and holds dual U.S.-Peruvian nationality.
Prevost studied at Villanova University and Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, later earning a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical College of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He was elevated to cardinal status only recently, in 2023.
