Cardinal Robert Prevost Elected as Pope Leo XIV, First American Pontiff
- On May 8, 2025, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was chosen as the new pontiff during the conclave in the Vatican and took the papal name Pope Leo XIV.
- The election followed a two-day conclave involving 133 cardinals held after Pope Francis died on April 21, 2025.
- Prevost, born in Chicago in 1955, served many years as a missionary and archbishop in Peru and is the first American pope.
- White smoke appeared from the Sistine Chapel around 5 pm BST, signaling a two-thirds majority, and Pope Leo XIV greeted the crowd saying, "Peace be with you."
- Pope Leo XIV’s election signals a continuation of Francis' priorities on inclusivity and dialogue, while also marking a return to some traditional papal symbols.
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1189 Articles
An American Pope Emerges as a Potential Contrast to Trump on the World Stage
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost’s ascension to the papacy marks an extraordinary moment for American leadership on the world stage at a time when President Trump has transformed the country’s reputation abroad and fueled distrust among longtime allies. But while two Americans now sit in positions of enormous global influence, Pope Leo XIV may offer the world a different view of U.S. values than Mr. Trump’s America First approach, which he has ex…
Faithful and political elite praise the selection of the 1st American pope
Key points: Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, a Chicago native, was elected pope the second day of balloting Pope Leo’s rise through the Catholic Church spans three continents, with deep ties to Peru and the Vatican Leaders across the U.S. celebrate his election as a moment of national pride and spiritual renewal American-born Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost made history Thursday. Prevost, who grew up in the south Chicago suburbs and steadily …
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For the second conclave in a row, the College of Cardinals shocked the watching world with its choice for the next pope. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was a long-shot favorite, precisely because he was from the US—conventional wisdom being that a pope should not be drawn from a global superpower. But on Thursday, the smiling man who emerged from behind the red curtains in St.
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