Pope Francis's death at the age of 88 means the Catholic Church must choose a new leader. Here's how cardinals elect the next pontiff at the conclave.

Simply put, a conclave is the assembly of cardinals that elects a pope. The word itself comes from the Latin "com" and "clavis," meaning "together" and "key," respectively – highlighting the absolute, ...

Catholic cardinals are gathering at the Vatican to elect the successor to Pope Francis, who died on April 21. Voting will take place in the Sistine Chapel, with ballots continuing in succession until ...

For the first time, the majority of cardinals to choose a pope are not from Europe, as Catholic demographics shift. But Europe remains the largest source of cardinals.

Over 130 voting cardinals must decide whether to continue in the direction of Francis or elect a pope likely to choose a more traditional path.

Two cardinals, Michael Czerny and Chibly Langlois, sat down with ABC News to discuss the challenges facing the church that the new pope will have to face.

Multiple rounds of voting likely will be required before a candidate emerges with the two-thirds majority required to become ...

The papal conclave, the secretive election process to elect the next leader of the Roman Catholic Church, commenced on Wednesday.

As with any new papacy, a quick look at their first appointments and audiences inside the system offers at least a small ...

Brazilian Cardinal Leonardo Steiner told America that Pope Leo would carry forward Pope Francis' legacy of synodality in the ...

Until the election of Pope Benedict XVI ... experts were already at work preparing for the conclave to elect Francis' successor. Vatican firefighters installed the chimney at the Sistine Chapel ...

Pope Leo XIV has reinstated the “conclave bonus” given to Vatican employees for their service during the sede vacante period.