How many days and votes does it take to elect a pope? History offers some clues

Toronto Star

08-05-2025

VATICAN CITY (AP) — How long does it take to choose a pope?
It's hard to say precisely, since the Vatican doesn't publish official data on the number of votes or tallies in past conclaves, and sources compiling their own data are not in complete agreement.
But historical figures provide a few clues.
The longest conclave since the 20th century took 14 rounds of balloting across five days, ending with the election of Pius XI in 1922. The shortest was the conclave that elected Pius XII in 1939, which took three ballots in two days.
Cardinals must reach a two-thirds majority to elect a pope. That was somewhat easier in conclaves past: In 1922 there were just 53 voting cardinals, and until 1978 there were fewer than 100 each time. This year there are 133, so 89 votes are needed.
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Here's a look at the duration of conclaves in recent history, according to multiple sources including Catholic and other Italian publications:
- 1914: Benedict XV: 10 ballots, 3 days
- 1922: Pius XI: 14 ballots, 5 days
- 1939: Pius XII: 3 ballots, 2 days
- 1958: John XXIII: 11 ballots, 4 days
- 1963: Paul VI: 5 or 6 ballots, 3 days
- 1978: John Paul I: 4 ballots, 2 days
- 1978: John Paul II: 8 ballots, 3 days
- 2005: Benedict XVI: 4 ballots, 2 days
- 2013: Francis: 5 ballots, 2 days