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STV News
08-05-2025
- Politics
- STV News
Cardinals begin a second day of conclave voting after black smoke
The first plume of black smoke rose from the Sistine Chapel chimney on Wednesday night, as ITV News' Europe Editor James Mates and ITV News Correspondent Sejal Karia report from the Vatican Catholic cardinals have begun the second round of voting in the Sistine Chapel to try and elect a new pope. After spending the night sequestered at the Vatican residences, the 133 cardinals will take part in two ballots on Thursday morning and then two in the afternoon. This will continue each successive day, until a winner is found, with the necessary candidate requiring a two-thirds majority, or 89 votes. The first day of voting in the secretive papal conclave failed to elect a new pope as black smoke was seen rising from the Vatican chimney. The longest conclave lasted over two years in 1268 and is also thought to be the first 'true' conclave conducted under rules we would recognise from today's papal elections. Cardinals said this week they expected a short conclave, although this could still take several rounds of voting. The first sign a new pope has been chosen will be white smoke emerging from the chimney. Once a Pope is elected, he will be led to the 'Room of Tears', a small room next to the Sistine Chapel where he dons the white papal vestments for the first time. People react in St. Peter's Square after black smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel. / Credit: AP The person who is selected to become the next pope will almost certainly be one of the 133 cardinals within the conclave, and there is a lot of speculation about who that will be. There are some real-world geopolitical concerns to take into consideration. The Catholic Church is growing in Africa and Asia, both in the number of baptised faithful and vocations to the priesthood and women's religious orders. It is shrinking in traditionally Catholic bastions of Europe, with empty churches and the faithful formally leaving the church in places like Germany, many citing the abuse scandals. Pope Francis was the first Latin American pope, and the region still counts the majority of the world's Catholics. Subscribe free to our weekly newsletter for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News. Direct to your inbox every Friday morning. If, after three days no winner has been chosen, voting is paused for one day of prayer, informal discussions, and a brief spiritual exhortation by the senior cardinal deacon. Voting then resumes. After every seven additional rounds without success, another pause and exhortation follow – first by the senior cardinal priest, and later, if necessary, by the senior cardinal bishop. If still no pope is elected after 21 votes, a final pause for prayer, dialogue, and reflection is observed. At this point, voting continues – but the cardinals may only choose between the two candidates who received the most votes in the previous round. Even then, a two-thirds majority is still required, and the two candidates in question are not allowed to vote. Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know… Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
ITV News
06-05-2025
- Politics
- ITV News
Papal Conclave: Decision time for cardinals choosing the next pope
ITV News Europe Editor James Mates reports from the Vatican on the eve of the Papal Conclave Cardinals will begin trying to find a new pope on Wednesday afternoon, when the Conclave opens, more than two weeks after the death of Pope Francis. Given the challenges facing the Catholic Church, it is a daunting task for the 133 cardinal electors, who come from 70 different countries. That is because sexual abuse and financials scandals have harmed the church's reputation and there are trends which are turning people away from organized religion in many parts of the world. The Vatican is also struggling with financial issues. There is also an element of uncertainty about the election because many of the cardinal electors did not know one another before last week. They held their last day of pre-conclave meetings on Tuesday morning, during which Francis' fisherman's ring and his official seal were destroyed in one of the final formal rites of the transition of his pontificate to the next. When the Conclave opens on Wednesday afternoon, the "princes of the church" will walk solemnly into the Sistine Chapel to the meditative chant of the "Litany of the Saints." They'll take their oaths of secrecy under the daunting vision of heaven and hell in Michelangelo's "Last Judgment," hear a meditation from a senior cardinal and then cast their first ballot. Assuming no candidate secures the necessary two-thirds majority, or 89 votes, the cardinals will retire for the day and return on Thursday. They will have two ballots in the morning and then two in the afternoon, each successive day, until a winner is found. The person who is selected to become the next pope, will almost certainly be one of the 133 cardinals within the Conclave and there is a lot of speculation about who that will be. There are some real-world geopolitical concerns to take into consideration. The Catholic Church is growing in Africa and Asia , both in numbers of baptised faithful and vocations to the priesthood and women's religious orders. It is shrinking in traditionally Catholic bastions of Europe, with empty churches and the faithful formally leaving the church in places like Germany, many citing the abuse scandals. Pope Francis was the first Latin American pope , and the region still counts the majority of the world's Catholics. However, India has four cardinal-electors, and overall Asia counts 23, making it the second-biggest voting bloc after Europe, which has 53 (or likely 52, given that one is not expected to participate for health reasons). According to Vatican statistics, Catholics represent 3.3% of the population in Asia, but their numbers are growing, especially in terms of seminarians, as they are in Africa, where Catholics represent about 20% of the population. Whatever the final outcome is, there will be a lot of attention on chimney of the Sistine Chapel in the coming days.
