The first day of the conclave to elect the late Pope Francis’ successor closed without a decision.
The 133 cardinals sworn to secrecy to take part in the election gathered in the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday to begin the process to decide the next head of the Catholic Church. Francis’ death just over two weeks ago set the process of choosing his successor in motion.
Black smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday night, signaling to a crowd of tens of thousands of onlookers that the conclave had closed its first day with no decision. The result was expected as the first vote has little chance of resulting in a pope.
For the next pope to be elected, he must receive a two-thirds vote from the cardinals in the conclave. The conclave is made up of Catholic cardinals under the age of 80. Bishop Robert Barron, founder of Word on Fire, said that the first vote, while inconclusive, is an important gauge for the cardinals to see who the viable candidates may be.
“For the first time they’re going to sense exactly who are the candidates,” said Barron, according to <a href="https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/new-pope-conclave-day-one-05-07-25#cmae76xdt001g3b6p6z3wvvg5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CNN</a>. “Maybe some people that we’ve all been talking about are not really going to get votes. And then they’ll see, ok, probably someone a little more left, someone a little more right. So, this vote will be an important one, almost certainly indecisive, but it will give a good indication of where the conclave is.”
The cardinals will reconvene in the Sistine Chapel on Thursday to resume voting. As many as four votes may be held that day. When a new pope is chosen, white smoke will rise from the chimney in the chapel, a message to the Catholic faithful that the conclave has been successful.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
A handy graphic. All times are EDT. <a href="https://t.co/iDkN8sWZ1C">pic.twitter.com/iDkN8sWZ1C</a>
&mdash; Father V (@father_rmv) <a href="https://twitter.com/father_rmv/status/1919912732771406121?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 7, 2025</a></blockquote>
This conclave is the largest in history, according to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/05/07/world/pope-conclave-updates/heres-the-latest?smid=url-share" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The New York Times</a>. Most of the 133 cardinals involved were handpicked by Francis.
In some sense, the election of the next pope may be a referendum on Francis’ papacy. The late pontiff was accused of making confusing statements and ignoring canon law.
“I think it was a very conflictual legacy,” Fr. Robert Sirico, founder of the conservative Acton Institute, told <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/as-conclave-begins-conservative-catholics-try-to-make-sense-of-pope-francis?author=Mairead+Elordi&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=2&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=As+Conclave+Begins%2C+Conservative+Catholics+Try+To+Make+Sense+Of+Pope+Francis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Wire</a>.
“I think you had almost opposites in the same person because he would affirm clearly and sometimes in very blunt language the Church’s teaching on the controversial issues, but on the other hand he was sending messages that endeared him to the most progressive elements of the Church, and it’s not clear to me what his strategy was,” said Sirico.

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Conclave Closes Day One With Key First Vote, No Pope Chosen

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Conclave Closes Day One With Key First Vote, No Pope Chosen