Plumes of black smoke emanated from the roof of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican earlier today as the voting by the conclave of Cardinals to elect a successor to the late Pope Francis ended without electing a new pope.
A muted roar went up from the faithful gathered at Rome’s St. Peter’s Square as soon as the black plume of smoke went up, with many consequently streaming out of the place to wait for the next voting round about 5.30pm Nigeria time.
White smoke from the chimney signals a new Pope has been elected.
The last conclave, which elected Francis in 2013, lasted two days and involved five ballots.
In 2005, when Pope Benedict XVI was chosen by the assembled cardinals, the process also lasted two days and took four ballots in total, while the conclave to elect John Paul II in 1978 took three days and eight ballots.
Of the modern conclaves, 10 since the beginning of the 20th century, the average length of time was three days and seven ballots.
Pope Francis died on April 21, 2025, Easter Monday, aged 88.
His last public appearance was the day before, on Easter Sunday, when he briefly waved at and blessed thousands of Catholics gathered below.
