Papal conclave: Third round of balloting fails to produce new pope
May 8 (UPI) -- Black smoke billowed for the second time in a matter of hours from a chimney atop the 15th century Sistine Chapel in the Vatican on Thursday morning, signaling that a papel conclave sequestered inside had been unable to elect a new pope.
The Vatican said in a news release that the second ballot of 133 members of the College of Cardinals on the first full day of the conclave, and the third since it got underway late Wednesday afternoon, was "inconclusive."
Nominees must gain the backing of two-thirds of cardinals with a vote, 89, to be elected as the pontiff, but the first round of voting on Wednesday and a second first thing Thursday all failed to deliver a result.
Around 15,000 people were gathered outside in St. Peter's Square with their eyes glued to giant screens showing a camera feed of the chimney in anticipation of the emission of white smoke, indicating the world's 1.4 billion Catholics have a new pope.
The next round of voting is expected to begin at about 4 p.m. local time, after breaking for lunch. If that round also proves inconclusive, a fourth vote will take place this evening.
Three of the past five conclaves reached a decision by the end of day 2, but a record number of cardinals voting could slow the process down.
In past centuries, the process could be very lengthy. Choosing Pope Gregory X took more than a thousand days, beginning in December 1268 and not reaching a decision until Sept. 1, 1271.
Cardinals in the conclave are not permitted to communicate with anyone except fellow conclave members, use their phones or access TV, radio or newspapers, but before they were locked away in the Sistine Chapel four names were circulating as the front-runners to become the 267th pontiff.
They are Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, Hungary's Peter Erdo, Jean-Marc Aveline of France and the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Pierbattista Pizzaballa.
Also in the running are Archbishop of Bologna, Matteo Zuppi, Luis Antonio Tagle of the Philippines and Peter Turkson of Ghana and around nine other candidates.
The names of U.S. Cardinals Robert Prevost and Joseph Tobin, Titular Bishop of Rome's Albano Diocese and the Archbishop of Newark, N.J., respectively, and have been touted as possible candidates to become the first American-born pope.
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