New Pope to be elected by Cardinals from 71 countries

ROME, ITALY | THE INDEPENDENT | The upcoming Conclave for the election of the new Pope will draw Cardinals from 71 countries across all five continents, the Vatican has announced. On Monday, the Cardinals gathered in Rome agreed that the Conclave would begin on May 7, 2025, following the death of Pope Francis, who was buried on Saturday, April 26, 2025, at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in central Rome.

The Conclave will take place in the Sistine Chapel, which will be closed to visitors for the duration of the election period. Since Pope Francis’s burial, the Cardinals have held six General Congregations in the New Synod Hall in preparation for the Conclave. On Tuesday, 183 Cardinals were present in Rome, including 124 Cardinal Electors.

“The Cardinals addressed themes related to the Church and the challenges it faces, offering reflections shaped by the perspectives of their continents and regions of origin, as well as the Church’s possible responses,” the Vatican Press Office stated. French Cardinal Dominique Mamberti has been named Proto-Deacon, meaning he will have the honor of announcing “Habemus Papam” — “We have a Pope” — once a new pontiff is elected.

According to the Vatican Press Office, 135 of the Church’s 252 Cardinals are under 80 years of age and therefore eligible to vote in the Conclave. Of these, 108 were appointed by Pope Francis, 22 by Benedict XVI, and five by Saint John Paul II, making them the “veterans” of the Conclave. The list of veteran Cardinals includes French Cardinal Philippe Barbarin, Croatian Cardinal Josip Bozanić, Cardinal Vinko Puljić from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Cardinal Peter Turkson from Ghana.

Europe remains the most heavily represented continent with 53 Cardinal Electors. Some of these European Cardinals lead dioceses and archdioceses outside Europe or serve in diplomatic roles as Apostolic Nuncios or work within the Roman Curia. Italy continues to have the largest national representation with 19 electors, followed by France (6) and Spain (5).

However, Europe’s dominance has declined, with its share of Cardinal Electors dropping from 50% in 2013 to 40% in 2025. This shift reflects Pope Francis’s emphasis on appointing more Cardinals from Asia-Pacific and Sub-Saharan Africa regions. The Americas collectively account for 37 electors — 16 from North America, 4 from Central America, and 17 from South America.

Asia will be represented by 23 Cardinals, Africa by 18, and Oceania by 4. For the first time, 12 countries will be represented by their native Cardinals in a Conclave: Haiti, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, Sweden, Luxembourg, Timor-Leste, Singapore, South Sudan, Ghana, and Serbia. Regarding the demographics of the electors, Vatican News reported that the youngest Cardinal is Ukrainian-born Australian Mikola Bychok, aged 45, while the oldest is Spaniard Carlos Osoro Sierra, aged 79.

The breakdown by birth decade shows six Cardinals born in the 1970s, 50 in the 1940s, 47 in the 1950s, and 31 in the 1960s. The year 1947 is the most represented, with 13 Cardinals either aged 78 or approaching that age. Of the 135 eligible Cardinals, two have confirmed they will not attend the Conclave for health reasons, according to the Director of the Holy See Press Office, Matteo Bruni.

The College of Cardinals announces that all 133 Cardinal electors participating in the upcoming conclave have the right to vote for the new Pope.https://t.co/0YHY4QasIe

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) April 30, 2025

Additionally, Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu will not participate in the election. He announced that he would respect the wishes of Pope Francis following his conviction on charges of embezzlement and fraud — a conviction he has appealed, though the case remains unresolved. The Vatican also confirmed that Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the College of Cardinals, will preside over the Mass for the Election of the Pope.

The Mass will be celebrated at 10:00 AM in St. Peter’s Basilica on May 7. Later that day, at 4:30 PM, the Conclave will formally commence with a prayer service in the Pauline Chapel. The Cardinal Electors will pray the Litany of the Saints before processing into the Sistine Chapel. There, they will sing hymns and solemnly swear to faithfully carry out the Petrine Ministry if elected and to maintain strict secrecy regarding the Conclave proceedings.

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URN