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One hundred thirty three cardinals are gathered inside the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, Italy for the second day of the conclave which will elect a new pope.
The second set of secret ballots follows an unsuccessful vote on Wednesday evening when the conclave began.
A successful candidate to replace Pope Francis, who died on Easter Monday April 21, 2025 will require a two-thirds majority of the voting cardinals.
The first ballot on Wednesday failed, resulting in a plume of black smoke –fumata nera in Italian from the chapel’s chimney.
White smoke-fumata bianca will signify that a new pope has been elected, as will the ringing of the bells of St. Peter’s Basilica.
As the second day of voting begins, the next person elected pope will need at least 89 votes in order to achieve the majority from the College of Cardinals. Crowds of people are gathered at St. Peter’s Square for day two of the conclave, hopeful that the full day of voting by cardinal electors will produce a new pope.
No pope in modern times has been elected on the first attempt and Wednesday’s outcome was widely expected.
On Wednesday evening thousands of faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square waiting for smoke from the roof of the chapel at the end of a day rich in ritual and pageantry, with prelates praying for divine guidance in their secret ballot.
Crowds had to be patient as it took longer than expected for the smoke to appear, more than three hours after the start of the conclave. It was an hour more than it took for smoke to be seen after the first vote in the 2013 conclave that picked the late Pope Francis.
But given recent history, a final result is possible from the second day, when up to four rounds of voting can take place. White smoke and the pealing of bells will signal that the 1.4-billion-member Church has a new leader.
The conclave convened on Wednesday afternoon, exactly 16 days after the death of 88-year-old Pope Francis.
The next pope will be the Catholic Church’s 267th leader.
