How the Catholic Church elects a new pope after the death of Francisd

‎The Vatican confirmed the death of Pope Francis on Monday, triggering the Roman Catholic Church’s time-honored procedures that mark the end of one papacy and the solemn search for the next spiritual leader of over a billion Catholics worldwide.

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‎Pope Francis holds the Holy Cross during the Celebration of the Lord's Passion at St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City in 2015.

‎Franco Origlia/Getty Images

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‎With his passing, the Church enters a period known as Sede Vacante—Latin for "the seat being vacant." During this interregnum, all senior Vatican officials are relieved of their duties, except for one: the camerlengo. Irish-American Cardinal Kevin Farrell, appointed to the role in 2019 by Francis himself, now assumes temporary governance of the Holy See.

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‎Among his ceremonial responsibilities is verifying the pope’s death, a task once dramatized with a silver hammer gently tapped on the pontiff's forehead while calling his birth name. In modern times, the ritual is largely symbolic. The camerlengo also oversees the destruction of the Fisherman’s Ring, a signet once used to seal papal decrees, now broken in the presence of cardinals to signal the end of a pontificate and guard against forgery.

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‎Simplicity in Death

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‎True to his pastoral philosophy, Pope Francis requested a departure from the grand funeral customs of his predecessors. While popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI were laid to rest in triple coffins and entombed in St. Peter’s Basilica, Francis asked for a simpler burial at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. His remains will lie in a single coffin of wood and zinc.

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‎His body will be laid out for public veneration in St. Peter’s Basilica—but without the traditional display on a velvet-covered bier propped up by cushions. Vatican officials said these choices reflect Francis’s view of the papacy as a service, not a throne.

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‎Preparing for the Conclave

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‎Cardinals from across the globe will now participate in general congregations, a series of meetings to determine funeral details, begin nine days of mourning (novemdiales), and plan for the election of a new pope.

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‎A conclave—from the Latin cum clave, meaning “with a key”—will begin no sooner than 15 and no later than 20 days after the pope’s death. During the conclave, 135 cardinal electors under the age of 80 will gather in the Sistine Chapel under Michelangelo’s frescoed ceiling to vote in strict secrecy. Of these, 108 were appointed by Pope Francis, shaping the ideological and geographical profile of his successor.

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‎The electors will vote four times daily—twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon—until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. Ballots are burned after each round: black smoke signals no decision; white smoke, the joyful announcement of a new pope. The bells of St. Peter’s ring in unison when the white smoke rises.

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‎“Habemus Papam” – We Have a Pope

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‎Upon election, the new pope is led to the Room of Tears, where he dresses in papal garments and reflects privately. He then accepts the role and chooses a papal name.

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‎Finally, standing on the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, the senior cardinal deacon—currently Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino—proclaims the iconic words: “Habemus Papam!”

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‎Thus begins a new era for the Roman Catholic Church, born from centuries-old tradition and global anticipation.