Thick black smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel chimney on Wednesday, signaling that Catholic cardinals failed to elect a new pope in their first round of voting.
Tens of thousands gathered in St. Peter’s Square, watching intently as the smoke appeared three hours and 15 minutes after the conclave began, confirming no candidate had yet secured the required two-thirds majority.
The 133 voting cardinals — called back to Rome after Pope Francis’ de@th on April 21 — will return to the Santa Marta guesthouse and resume voting on Thursday. Francis, who served for 12 years, leaves behind a global Church of 1.4 billion followers facing significant internal and external challenges.
By tradition, only cardinals under 80 are eligible to vote. Sealed off inside the Sistine Chapel, their decision is communicated through smoke: black for no pope, white when one is chosen. The winning candidate needs 89 votes.
“This conclave is the largest and most international in Church history,” bringing together cardinals from around 70 countries, many unfamiliar with each other. With no clear frontrunner, the vote remains wide open. Candidates range across theological lines — from progressive to conservative — reflecting the Church’s broad internal spectrum.
As tradition and modern tensions collide, the world waits for the puff of white smoke that will signal not just a new pope, but the beginning of a new chapter in the Church’s 2,000-year history.
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