How many votes does it take to elect a pope?

Traditionally, the vote was conducted by Acclamation, by selection (by committee), or by plenary vote. Acclamation was the simplest procedure, consisting entirely of a voice vote.
The election of the pope almost always takes place in the Sistine Chapel, in a sequestered meeting called a "conclave" (so called because the cardinal electors are theoretically locked in, "cum clave", i.e., with key, until they elect a new pope). Three cardinals are chosen by lot to collect the votes of absent cardinal electors (by reason of illness), three are chosen by lot to count the votes, and three are chosen by lot to review the count of the votes. The ballots are distributed and each cardinal elector writes the name of his choice on it and pledges aloud that he is voting for "one whom under God I think ought to be elected" before folding and depositing his vote on a plate atop a large chalice placed on the altar. For the Papal conclave, 2005, a special urn was used for this purpose instead of a chalice and plate. The plate is then used to drop the ballot into the chalice, making it difficult for electors to insert multiple ballots. Before being read, the ballots are counted while still folded; if the number of ballots does not match the number of electors, the ballots are burned unopened and a new vote is held. Otherwise, each ballot is read aloud by the presiding Cardinal, who pierces the ballot with a needle and thread, stringing all the ballots together and tying the ends of the thread to ensure accuracy and honesty. Balloting continues until someone is elected by a two-thirds majority.
One of the most prominent aspects of the papal election process is the means by which the results of a ballot are announced to the world. Once the ballots are counted and bound together, they are burned in a special stove erected in the Sistine Chapel, with the smoke escaping through a small chimney visible from Saint Peter's Square. The ballots from an unsuccessful vote are burned along with a chemical compound to create black smoke, or "fumata nera". (Traditionally, wet straw was used to produce the black smoke, but this was not completely reliable. The chemical compound is more reliable than the straw.) When a vote is successful, the ballots are burned alone, sending white smoke ("fumata bianca") through the chimney and announcing to the world the election of a new pope. Starting with the Papal conclave, 2005, church bells are also rung as a signal that a new pope has been chosen.

Pope

The pope ( from "pappas", "father"), also known as the supreme pontiff (from Latin "pontifex maximus" "greatest priest"), is the Bishop of Rome and "ex officio" leader of the worldwide Catholic Church. Since 1929, the pope has also been head of state of Vatican City, a city-state enclaved within Rome, Italy. The current pope is Francis, who was elected on 13 March 2013, succeeding Benedict XVI.

While his office is called the papacy, the episcopal see and ecclesiastical jurisdiction is called the Holy See. It is the Holy See that is the sovereign entity of international law headquartered in the distinctively independent Vatican City State, established by the Lateran Treaty in 1929 between Italy and the Holy See to ensure its temporal, diplomatic, and spiritual independence. The primacy of the Bishop of Rome is largely derived from his role as the apostolic successor to Saint Peter, to whom primacy was conferred by Jesus, giving him the Keys of Heaven and the powers of "binding and loosing", naming him as the "rock" upon which the church would be built.

The apostolic see of Rome was founded by Saint Peter and Saint Paul in 1st century, according to Catholic tradition. The papacy is one of the most enduring institutions in the world and has had a prominent part in world history. In ancient times the popes helped spread Christianity, and intervened to find resolutions in various doctrinal disputes. In the Middle Ages, they played a role of secular importance in Western Europe, often acting as arbitrators between Christian monarchs. Currently, in addition to the expansion of the Christian faith and doctrine, the popes are involved in ecumenism and interfaith dialogue, charitable work, and the defense of human rights.

In some periods of history, the papacy, which originally had no temporal powers, accrued wide secular powers rivaling those of temporal rulers. However, in recent centuries the temporal authority of the papacy has declined and the office is now almost exclusively focused on religious matters. By contrast, papal claims of spiritual authority have been increasingly firmly expressed over time, culminating in 1870 with the proclamation of the dogma of papal infallibility for rare occasions when the pope speaks "ex cathedra"—literally "from the chair (of Saint Peter)"—to issue a formal definition of faith or morals. Still, the Pope is considered one of the world's most powerful people because of his extensive diplomatic, cultural, and spiritual influence on 1.3 billion Catholics and beyond, as well as the official representative of the Catholic Church being the largest non-government provider of education and health care in the world, with a vast international network of charities.

The word "pope" derives from Greek πάππας meaning "father". In the early centuries of Christianity, this title was applied, especially in the east, to all bishops and other senior clergy, and later became reserved in the west to the Bishop of Rome, a reservation made official only in the 11th century. The earliest record of the use of this title was in regard to the by then deceased Patriarch of Alexandria, Pope Heraclas of Alexandria (232–248). The earliest recorded use of the title "pope" in English dates to the mid-10th century, when it was used in reference to the 7th century Roman Pope Vitalian in an Old English translation of Bede's "Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum".

The Catholic Church teaches that the pastoral office, the office of shepherding the Church, that was held by the apostles, as a group or "college" with Saint Peter as their head, is now held by their successors, the bishops, with the bishop of Rome (the pope) as their head. Thus, is derived another title by which the pope is known, that of "Supreme Pontiff".

The Catholic Church teaches that Jesus personally appointed Peter as leader of the Church, and the Catholic Church's dogmatic constitution "Lumen gentium" makes a clear distinction between apostles and bishops, presenting the latter as the successors of the former, with the pope as successor of Peter, in that he is head of the bishops as Peter was head of the apostles. Some historians argue against the notion that Peter was the first bishop of Rome, noting that the episcopal see in Rome can be traced back no earlier than the 3rd century. The writings of the Church Father Irenaeus who wrote around AD 180 reflect a belief that Peter "founded and organized" the Church at Rome. Moreover, Irenaeus was not the first to write of Peter's presence in the early Roman Church. Clement of Rome wrote in a letter to the Corinthians, "c." 96, about the persecution of Christians in Rome as the "struggles in our time" and presented to the Corinthians its heroes, "first, the greatest and most just columns", the "good apostles" Peter and Paul. St. Ignatius of Antioch wrote shortly after Clement and in his letter from the city of Smyrna to the Romans he said he would not command them as Peter and Paul did. Given this and other evidence, such as Emperor Constantine's erection of the "Old St. Peter's Basilica" on the location of St. Peter's tomb, as held and given to him by Rome's Christian community, many scholars agree that Peter was martyred in Rome under Nero, although some scholars argue that he may have been martyred in Palestine.

The New Testament offers no proof that Jesus established the papacy, nor even that he established Peter as the first bishop of Rome. Some theologians argue, using Peter's own words, that Christ intended himself—and not Peter—as the foundation of the church. Others have argued that the church is indeed built upon Jesus and faith, but also on the disciples as the roots and foundations of the church on the basis of Paul's teaching in Romans and Ephesians, though not primarily Peter.

First-century Christian communities would have had a group of presbyter-bishops functioning as leaders of their local churches. Gradually, episcopacies were established in metropolitan areas. Antioch may have developed such a structure before Rome. In Rome, there were many who claimed to be the rightful bishop, though again Irenaeus stressed the validity of one line of bishops from the time of St. Peter up to his contemporary Pope Victor I and listed them. Some writers claim that the emergence of a single bishop in Rome probably did not occur until the middle of the 2nd century. In their view, Linus, Cletus and Clement were possibly prominent presbyter-bishops, but not necessarily monarchical bishops.

Documents of the 1st century and early 2nd century indicate that the bishop of Rome had some kind of pre-eminence and prominence in the Church as a whole, as even a letter from the bishop, or patriarch, of Antioch acknowledged the Bishop of Rome as "a first among equals", though the detail of what this meant is unclear.

It seems that at first the terms "episcopos" and "presbyter" were used interchangeably. The consensus among scholars has been that, at the turn of the 1st and 2nd centuries, local congregations were led by bishops and presbyters whose offices were overlapping or indistinguishable. Some say that there was probably "no single'monarchical' bishop in Rome before the middle of the 2nd century...and likely later." Other scholars and historians disagree, citing the historical records of St. Ignatius of Antioch (d 107) and St. Irenaeus who recorded the linear succession of Bishops of Rome (the popes) up until their own times. They also cite the importance accorded to the Bishops of Rome in the ecumenical councils, including the early ones.

In the early Christian era, Rome and a few other cities had claims on the leadership of worldwide Church. James the Just, known as "the brother of the Lord", served as head of the Jerusalem church, which is still honored as the "Mother Church" in Orthodox tradition. Alexandria had been a center of Jewish learning and became a center of Christian learning. Rome had a large congregation early in the apostolic period whom Paul the Apostle addressed in his Epistle to the Romans, and according to tradition Paul was martyred there.

During the 1st century of the Church (c. 30–130), the Roman capital became recognized as a Christian center of exceptional importance. Clement I, at the end of the 1st century, wrote an epistle to the Church in Corinth intervening in a major dispute, and apologizing for not having taken action earlier. However, there are only a few other references of that time to recognition of the authoritative primacy of the Roman See outside of Rome. In the Ravenna Document of 13 October 2007, theologians chosen by the Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Churches stated: "41. Both sides agree... that Rome, as the Church that 'presides in love' according to the phrase of St Ignatius of Antioch, occupied the first place in the "taxis", and that the bishop of Rome was therefore the "protos" among the patriarchs. Translated into English, the statement means "first among equals". What form that should take is still a matter of disagreement, just as it was when the Catholic and Orthodox Churches split in the Great East-West Schism. They also disagree on the interpretation of the historical evidence from this era regarding the prerogatives of the Bishop of Rome as "protos", a matter that was already understood in different ways in the first millennium."

In the late 2nd century AD, there were more manifestations of Roman authority over other churches. In 189, assertion of the primacy of the Church of Rome may be indicated in Irenaeus's "Against Heresies" (3:3:2): "With [the Church of Rome], because of its superior origin, all the churches must agree... and it is in her that the faithful everywhere have maintained the apostolic tradition." In AD 195, Pope Victor I, in what is seen as an exercise of Roman authority over other churches, excommunicated the Quartodecimans for observing Easter on the 14th of Nisan, the date of the Jewish Passover, a tradition handed down by John the Evangelist (see Easter controversy). Celebration of Easter on a Sunday, as insisted on by the pope, is the system that has prevailed (see computus).

The Edict of Milan in 313 granted freedom to all religions in the Roman Empire, beginning the Peace of the Church. In 325, the First Council of Nicaea condemned Arianism, declaring trinitarianism dogmatic, and in its sixth canon recognized the special role of the Sees of Rome, Alexandria, and Antioch. Great defenders of Trinitarian faith included the popes, especially Pope Liberius, who was exiled to Berea by Constantius II for his Trinitarian faith, Damasus I, and several other bishops.

In 380, the Edict of Thessalonica declared Nicene Christianity to be the state religion of the empire, with the name "Catholic Christians" reserved for those who accepted that faith. While the civil power in the Eastern Roman Empire controlled the church, and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, the capital, wielded much power, in the Western Roman Empire, the Bishops of Rome were able to consolidate the influence and power they already possessed. After the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, barbarian tribes were converted to Arian Christianity or Catholicism; Clovis I, king of the Franks, was the first important barbarian ruler to convert to Catholicism rather than Arianism, allying himself with the papacy. Other tribes, such as the Visigoths, later abandoned Arianism in favour of Catholicism.

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the pope served as a source of authority and continuity. Pope Gregory I ("c" 540–604) administered the church with strict reform. From an ancient senatorial family, Gregory worked with the stern judgement and discipline typical of ancient Roman rule. Theologically, he represents the shift from the classical to the medieval outlook; his popular writings are full of dramatic miracles, potent relics, demons, angels, ghosts, and the approaching end of the world.

Gregory's successors were largely dominated by the Exarch of Ravenna, the Byzantine emperor's representative in the Italian Peninsula. These humiliations, the weakening of the Byzantine Empire in the face of the Muslim conquests, and the inability of the emperor to protect the papal estates against the Lombards, made Pope Stephen II turn from Emperor Constantine V. He appealed to the Franks to protect his lands. Pepin the Short subdued the Lombards and donated Italian land to the papacy. When Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne (800) as Roman Emperor, he established the precedent that, in Western Europe, no man would be emperor without being crowned by a Pope.

The low point of the papacy was 867–1049. This period includes the Saeculum obscurum, the Crescentii era, and the Tusculan Papacy. The papacy came under the control of vying political factions. Popes were variously imprisoned, starved, killed, and deposed by force. The family of a certain papal official made and unmade popes for fifty years. The official's great-grandson, Pope John XII, held orgies of debauchery in the Lateran Palace. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor had John accused in an ecclesiastical court, which deposed him and elected a layman as Pope Leo VIII. John mutilated the Imperial representatives in Rome and had himself reinstated as pope. Conflict between the Emperor and the papacy continued, and eventually dukes in league with the emperor were buying bishops and popes almost openly.

In 1049, Leo IX became pope, at last a pope with the character to face the papacy's problems. He traveled to the major cities of Europe to deal with the church's moral problems firsthand, notably simony and clerical marriage and concubinage. With his long journey, he restored the prestige of the papacy in Northern Europe.

From the 7th century it became common for European monarchies and nobility to found churches and perform investiture or deposition of clergy in their states and fiefdoms, their personal interests causing corruption among the clergy. This practice had become common because often the prelates and secular rulers were also participants in public life. To combat this and other practices that had corrupted the Church between the years 900 and 1050, centres emerged promoting ecclesiastical reform, the most important being the Abbey of Cluny, which spread its ideals throughout Europe. This reform movement gained strength with the election of Pope Gregory VII in 1073, who adopted a series of measures in the movement known as the Gregorian Reform, in order to fight strongly against simony and the abuse of civil power and try to restore ecclesiastical discipline, including clerical celibacy. The conflict between popes and secular autocratic rulers such as the Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV and Henry I of England, known as the Investiture controversy, was only resolved in 1122, by the Concordat of Worms, in which Pope Callixtus II decreed that clerics were to be invested by clerical leaders, and temporal rulers by lay investiture. Soon after, Pope Alexander III began reforms that would lead to the establishment of canon law.

Since the beginning of the 7th century, the Caliphate had conquered much of the southern Mediterranean, and represented a threat to Christianity. In 1095, the Byzantine emperor, Alexios I Komnenos, asked for military aid from Pope Urban II in the ongoing Byzantine–Seljuq wars. Urban, at the council of Clermont, called the First Crusade to assist the Byzantine Empire to regain the old Christian territories, especially Jerusalem.

With the East–West Schism, the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church split definitively in 1054. This fracture was caused more by political events than by slight divergences of creed. Popes had galled the Byzantine emperors by siding with the king of the Franks, crowning a rival Roman emperor, appropriating the Exarchate of Ravenna, and driving into Greek Italy.

In the Middle Ages, popes struggled with monarchs over power.

From 1309 to 1377, the pope resided not in Rome but in Avignon. The Avignon Papacy was notorious for greed and corruption. During this period, the pope was effectively an ally of the Kingdom of France, alienating France's enemies, such as the Kingdom of England.

The pope was understood to have the power to draw on the Treasury of Merit built up by the saints and by Christ, so that he could grant indulgences, reducing one's time in purgatory. The concept that a monetary fine or donation accompanied contrition, confession, and prayer eventually gave way to the common assumption that indulgences depended on a simple monetary contribution. The popes condemned misunderstandings and abuses, but were too pressed for income to exercise effective control over indulgences.

Popes also contended with the cardinals, who sometimes attempted to assert the authority of Catholic Ecumenical Councils over the pope's. Conciliarism holds that the supreme authority of the church lies with a General Council, not with the pope. Its foundations were laid early in the 13th century, and it culminated in the 15th century. The failure of Conciliarism to gain broad acceptance after the 15th century is taken as a factor in the Protestant Reformation.

Various Antipopes challenged papal authority, especially during the Western Schism (1378–1417). In this schism, the papacy had returned to Rome from Avignon, but an antipope was installed in Avignon, as if to extend the papacy there.

The Eastern Church continued to decline with the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire, undercutting Constantinople's claim to equality with Rome. Twice an Eastern Emperor tried to force the Eastern Church to reunify with the West. First in the Second Council of Lyon (1272–1274) and secondly in the Council of Florence (1431–1449). Papal claims of superiority were a sticking point in reunification, which failed in any event. In the 15th century, the Ottoman Empire captured Constantinople.

Protestant Reformers criticized the papacy as corrupt and characterized the pope as the antichrist.

Popes instituted a Catholic Reformation (1560–1648), which addressed the challenges of the Protestant Reformation and instituted internal reforms. Pope Paul III initiated the Council of Trent (1545–1563), whose definitions of doctrine and whose reforms sealed the triumph of the papacy over elements in the church that sought conciliation with Protestants and opposed papal claims.

Gradually forced to give up secular power, the popes focused on spiritual issues.

In 1870, the First Vatican Council proclaimed the dogma of papal infallibility for those rare occasions the pope speaks "ex cathedra" when issuing a solemn definition of faith or morals.

Later the same year, Victor Emmanuel II of Italy seized Rome from the pope's control and substantially completed the Italian unification.

In 1929, the Lateran Treaty between the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See established Vatican City as an independent city-state, guaranteeing papal independence from secular rule.

In 1950, Pope Pius XII defined the Assumption of Mary as dogma, the only time that a pope has spoken "ex cathedra" since papal infallibility was explicitly declared.

The Petrine Doctrine is still controversial as an issue of doctrine that continues to divide the eastern and western churches and separate Protestants from Rome.

The Catholic Church teaches that, within the Christian community, the bishops as a body have succeeded to the body of the apostles ("apostolic succession") and the Bishop of Rome has succeeded to Saint Peter.

Scriptural texts proposed in support of Peter's special position in relation to the church include:

The symbolic keys in the Papal coats of arms are a reference to the phrase "the keys of the kingdom of heaven" in the first of these texts. Some Protestant writers have maintained that the "rock" that Jesus speaks of in this text is Jesus himself or the faith expressed by Peter. This idea is undermined by the Biblical usage of "Cephas," which is the masculine form of "rock" in Aramaic, to describe Peter. The "Encyclopædia Britannica" comments that "the consensus of the great majority of scholars today is that the most obvious and traditional understanding should be construed, namely, that rock refers to the person of Peter".

The pope was originally chosen by those senior clergymen resident in and near Rome. In 1059 the electorate was restricted to the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church, and the individual votes of all Cardinal Electors were made equal in 1179. The electors are now limited to those who have not reached 80 on the day before the death or resignation of a pope. The pope does not need to be a Cardinal Elector or indeed a Cardinal; however, since the pope is the Bishop of Rome, only those who can be ordained a bishop can be elected, which means that any male baptized Catholic is eligible. The last to be elected when not yet a bishop was Pope Gregory XVI in 1831, and the last to be elected when not even a priest was Pope Leo X in 1513, and the last to be elected when not a cardinal was Pope Urban VI in 1378. If someone who is not a bishop is elected, he must be given episcopal ordination before the election is announced to the people.

The Second Council of Lyon was convened on 7 May 1274, to regulate the election of the pope. This Council decreed that the cardinal electors must meet within ten days of the pope's death, and that they must remain in seclusion until a pope has been elected; this was prompted by the three-year "sede vacante" following the death of Pope Clement IV in 1268. By the mid-16th century, the electoral process had evolved into its present form, allowing for variation in the time between the death of the pope and the meeting of the cardinal electors.

The Dean of the College of Cardinals then asks two solemn questions of the cardinal who has been elected. First he asks, "Do you freely accept your election as Supreme Pontiff?" If he replies with the word ""Accepto"", his reign begins at that instant. If he replies "not", his reign begins at the inauguration ceremony several days afterward. The Dean asks next, "By what name shall you be called?" The new pope announces the regnal name he has chosen. If the Dean himself is elected pope, the Vice Dean performs this task.

The new pope is led through the "Door of Tears" to a dressing room where three sets of white papal vestments ("immantatio") await: small, medium, and large. Donning the appropriate vestments and reemerging into the Sistine Chapel, the new pope is given the "Fisherman's Ring" by the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, whom he first either reconfirms or reappoints. The pope assumes a place of honor as the rest of the cardinals wait in turn to offer their first "obedience" ("adoratio") and to receive his blessing.

The Senior Cardinal Deacon announces from a balcony over St. Peter's Square the following proclamation: "Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum! Habemus Papam!" ("I announce to you a great joy! We have a pope!"). He announces the new pope's Christian name along with his newly chosen regnal name.

Until 1978 the pope's election was followed in a few days by the Papal coronation, which started with a procession with great pomp and circumstance from the Sistine Chapel to St. Peter's Basilica, with the newly elected pope borne in the "sedia gestatoria". After a solemn Papal Mass, the new pope was crowned with the "triregnum" (papal tiara) and he gave for the first time as pope the famous blessing "Urbi et Orbi" ("to the City [Rome] and to the World"). Another renowned part of the coronation was the lighting of a bundle of flax at the top of a gilded pole, which would flare brightly for a moment and then promptly extinguish, as he said, "Sic transit gloria mundi" ("Thus passes worldly glory"). A similar warning against papal hubris made on this occasion was the traditional exclamation, ""Annos Petri non-videbis"", reminding the newly crowned pope that he would not live to see his rule lasting as long as that of St. Peter. According to tradition, he headed the church for 35 years and has thus far been the longest-reigning pope in the history of the Catholic Church.

A traditionalist Catholic belief that lacks reliable authority claims that a Papal Oath was sworn, at their coronation, by all popes from Pope Agatho to Pope Paul VI and that it was omitted with the abolition of the coronation ceremony.

The Latin term, "sede vacante" ("while the see is vacant"), refers to a papal interregnum, the period between the death or resignation of a pope and the election of his successor. From this term is derived the term sedevacantism, which designates a category of dissident Catholics who maintain that there is no canonically and legitimately elected pope, and that there is therefore a "sede vacante". One of the most common reasons for holding this belief is the idea that the reforms of the Second Vatican Council, and especially the reform of the Tridentine Mass with the Mass of Paul VI, are heretical and that those responsible for initiating and maintaining these changes are heretics and not true popes.

For centuries, from 1378 on, those elected to the papacy were predominantly Italians. Prior to the election of the Polish cardinal Karol Wojtyla as Pope John Paul II in 1978, the last non-Italian was Pope Adrian VI of the Netherlands, elected in 1522. John Paul II was followed by election of the German-born Pope Benedict XVI, who was in turn followed by Argentine-born Pope Francis, who is the first non-European after 1272 years and the first Latin American, despite having an Italian ancestry.

The current regulations regarding a papal interregnum—that is, a "sede vacante" ("vacant seat")—were promulgated by Pope John Paul II in his 1996 document "Universi Dominici Gregis". During the "sede vacante" period, the College of Cardinals is collectively responsible for the government of the Church and of the Vatican itself, under the direction of the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church; however, canon law specifically forbids the cardinals from introducing any innovation in the government of the Church during the vacancy of the Holy See. Any decision that requires the assent of the pope has to wait until the new pope has been elected and accepts office.

In recent centuries, when a pope was judged to have died, it was reportedly traditional for the Cardinal Camerlengo to confirm the death ceremonially by gently tapping the pope's head thrice with a silver hammer, calling his birth name each time. This was not done on the deaths of popes John Paul I and John Paul II. The Cardinal Camerlengo retrieves the Ring of the Fisherman and cuts it in two in the presence of the Cardinals. The pope's seals are defaced, to keep them from ever being used again, and his personal apartment is sealed.

The body lies in state for several days before being interred in the crypt of a leading church or cathedral; all popes who have died in the 20th and 21st centuries have been interred in St. Peter's Basilica. A nine-day period of mourning ("novendialis") follows the interment.

It is highly unusual for a pope to resign. The 1983 Code of Canon Law states, "If it happens that the Roman Pontiff resigns his office, it is required for validity that the resignation is made freely and properly manifested but not that it is accepted by anyone." Benedict XVI, who vacated the Holy See on 28 February 2013, was the most recent to do so since Gregory XII's resignation in 1415.

Popes adopt a new name on their accession, known as papal or pontifical name. Officially, the Pope is given an Italian name by virtue of his Vatican citizenship and a Latin name by virtue of his status as Bishop of the Holy See of Rome. Currently, after a new pope is elected and accepts the election, he is asked "By what name shall you be called?". The new pope chooses the name by which he will be known from that point on. The senior Cardinal Deacon, or Cardinal Protodeacon, then appears on the balcony of Saint Peter's to proclaim the new pope by his birth name, and announce his papal name in Latin. It's customary when referring to popes to translate the regnal name into all local languages. Thus, for example, Papa Franciscus is Papa Francesco in Italian, but he is also known as Papa Francisco in his native Spanish, Pope Francis in English, etc.

The official list of titles of the pope, in the order in which they are given in the "Annuario Pontificio", is:

The best-known title, that of "Pope", does not appear in the official list, but is commonly used in the titles of documents, and appears, in abbreviated form, in their signatures. Thus Pope Paul VI signed as "Paulus PP. VI", the "PP." standing for ""papa pontifex"" ("pope and pontiff").

The title "Pope" was from the early 3rd century an honorific designation used for "any" bishop in the West. In the East, it was used only for the Bishop of Alexandria. Pope Marcellinus (d. 304) is the first Bishop of Rome shown in sources to have had the title "Pope" used of him. From the 6th century, the imperial chancery of Constantinople normally reserved this designation for the Bishop of Rome. From the early 6th century, it began to be confined in the West to the Bishop of Rome, a practice that was firmly in place by the 11th century, when Pope Gregory VII declared it reserved for the Bishop of Rome.

In Eastern Christianity, where the title "Pope" is used also of the Bishop of Alexandria, the Bishop of Rome is often referred to as the "Pope of Rome", regardless of whether the speaker or writer is in communion with Rome or not.

"Vicar of Jesus Christ" ("Vicarius Iesu Christi") is one of the official titles of the Pope given in the "Annuario Pontificio". It is commonly used in the slightly abbreviated form "Vicar of Christ" ("Vicarius Christi"). While it is only one of the terms with which the pope is referred to as "Vicar", it is "more expressive of his supreme headship of the Church on Earth, which he bears in virtue of the commission of Christ and with vicarial power derived from him", a vicarial power believed to have been conferred on Saint Peter when Christ said to him: "Feed my lambs...Feed my sheep" ().

The first record of the application of this title to a Bishop of Rome appears in a synod of 495 with reference to Pope Gelasius I. But at that time, and down to the 9th century, other bishops too referred to themselves as vicars of Christ, and for another four centuries this description was sometimes used of kings and even judges, as it had been used in the 5th and 6th centuries to refer to the Byzantine emperor. Earlier still, in the 3rd century, Tertullian used "vicar of Christ" to refer to the Holy Spirit sent by Jesus. Its use specifically for the pope appears in the 13th century in connection with the reforms of Pope Innocent III, as can be observed already in his 1199 letter to Leo I, King of Armenia. Other historians suggest that this title was already used in this way in association with the pontificate of Pope Eugene III (1145–1153).

This title "Vicar of Christ" is thus not used of the pope alone and has been used of all bishops since the early centuries. The Second Vatican Council referred to all bishops as "vicars and ambassadors of Christ", and this description of the bishops was repeated by Pope John Paul II in his encyclical "Ut unum sint," 95. The difference is that the other bishops are vicars of Christ for their own local churches, the pope is vicar of Christ for the whole Church.

On at least one occasion the title "Vicar of God" (a reference to Christ as God) was used of the pope.

The title "Vicar of Peter" ("Vicarius Petri") is used only of the pope, not of other bishops. Variations of it include: "Vicar of the Prince of the Apostles" ("Vicarius Principis Apostolorum") and "Vicar of the Apostolic See" ("Vicarius Sedis Apostolicae"). Saint Boniface described Pope Gregory II as vicar of Peter in the oath of fealty that he took in 722. In today's Roman Missal, the description "vicar of Peter" is found also in the collect of the Mass for a saint who was a pope.

The term "pontiff" is derived from the, which literally means "bridge builder" ("pons" + "facere") and which designated a member of the principal college of priests in ancient Rome. The Latin word was translated into ancient Greek variously: as,,, (hierophant), or (archiereus, high priest) The head of the college was known as the Pontifex Maximus (the greatest pontiff).

In Christian use, "pontifex" appears in the Vulgate translation of the New Testament to indicate the High Priest of Israel (in the original Koine Greek, ). The term came to be applied to any Christian bishop, but since the 11th century commonly refers specifically to the Bishop of Rome, who is more strictly called the "Roman Pontiff". The use of the term to refer to bishops in general is reflected in the terms "Roman Pontifical" (a book containing rites reserved for bishops, such as confirmation and ordination), and "pontificals" (the insignia of bishops).

The "Annuario Pontificio" lists as one of the official titles of the pope that of "Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church" (). He is also commonly called the Supreme Pontiff or the Sovereign Pontiff ().

"Pontifex Maximus", similar in meaning to "Summus Pontifex", is a title commonly found in inscriptions on papal buildings, paintings, statues and coins, usually abbreviated as "Pont. Max" or "P.M." The office of Pontifex Maximus, or head of the College of Pontiffs, was held by Julius Caesar and thereafter, by the Roman emperors, until Gratian (375–383) relinquished it. Tertullian, when he had become a Montanist, used the title derisively of either the pope or the Bishop of Carthage. The popes began to use this title regularly only in the 15th century.

Although the description "servant of the servants of God" () was also used by other Church leaders, including Augustine of Hippo and Benedict of Nursia, it was first used extensively as a papal title by Pope Gregory I, reportedly as a lesson in humility for the Patriarch of Constantinople, John the Faster, who had assumed the title "Ecumenical Patriarch". It became reserved for the pope in the 12th century and is used in papal bulls and similar important papal documents.

From 1863 until 2005, the "Annuario Pontificio" also included the title "Patriarch of the West". This title was first used by Pope Theodore I in 642, and was only used occasionally. Indeed, it did not begin to appear in the pontifical yearbook until 1863. On 22 March 2006, the Vatican released a statement explaining this omission on the grounds of expressing a "historical and theological reality" and of "being useful to ecumenical dialogue". The title Patriarch of the West symbolized the pope's special relationship with, and jurisdiction over, the Latin Church—and the omission of the title neither symbolizes in any way a change in this relationship, nor distorts the relationship between the Holy See and the Eastern Churches, as solemnly proclaimed by the Second Vatican Council.

Other titles commonly used are "His Holiness" (either used alone or as an honorific prefix "His Holiness Pope Francis"; and as "Your Holiness" as a form of address), "Holy Father". In Spanish and Italian, ""Beatísimo/Beatissimo Padre"" (Most Blessed Father) is often used in preference to ""Santísimo/Santissimo Padre"" (Most Holy Father). In the medieval period, ""Dominus Apostolicus"" ("the Apostolic Lord") was also used.

Pope Francis signs some documents with his name alone, either in Latin ("Franciscus", as in an encyclical dated 29 June 2013) or in another language. Other documents he signs in accordance with the tradition of using Latin only and including, in the abbreviated form "PP.", for the Latin "Papa Pontifex" ("Pope and Pontiff"). Popes who have an ordinal numeral in their name traditionally place the abbreviation "PP." before the ordinal numeral, as in "Benedictus PP. XVI" (Pope Benedict XVI), except in bulls of canonization and decrees of ecumenical councils, which a pope signs with the formula, "Ego N. Episcopus Ecclesiae catholicae", without the numeral, as in "Ego Benedictus Episcopus Ecclesiae catholicae" (I, Benedict, Bishop of the Catholic Church). The pope's signature is followed, in bulls of canonization, by those of all the cardinals resident in Rome, and in decrees of ecumenical councils, by the signatures of the other bishops participating in the council, each signing as Bishop of a particular see.

Papal bulls are headed "N. Episcopus Servus Servorum Dei" ("Name, Bishop, Servant of the Servants of God"). In general, they are not signed by the pope, but Pope John Paul II introduced in the mid-1980s the custom by which the pope signs not only bulls of canonization but also, using his normal signature, such as "Benedictus PP. XVI", bulls of nomination of bishops.

In heraldry, each pope has his own personal coat of arms. Though unique for each pope, the arms have for several centuries been traditionally accompanied by two keys in saltire (i.e., crossed over one another so as to form an "X") behind the escutcheon (shield) (one silver key and one gold key, tied with a red cord), and above them a silver "triregnum" with three gold crowns and red "infulae" (lappets—two strips of fabric hanging from the back of the triregnum which fall over the neck and shoulders when worn). This is blazoned: "two keys in saltire or and argent, interlacing in the rings or, beneath a tiara argent, crowned or". The 21st century has seen departures from this tradition. In 2005, Pope Benedict XVI, while maintaining the crossed keys behind the shield, omitted the papal tiara from his personal coat of arms, replacing it with a mitre with three horizontal lines. Beneath the shield he added the pallium, a papal symbol of authority more ancient than the tiara, the use of which is also granted to metropolitan archbishops as a sign of communion with the See of Rome. Although the tiara was omitted in the pope's personal coat of arms, the coat of arms of the Holy See, which includes the tiara, remained unaltered. In 2013, Pope Francis maintained the mitre that replaced the tiara, but omitted the pallium. He also departed from papal tradition by adding beneath the shield his personal pastoral motto: "Miserando atque eligendo".

The flag most frequently associated with the pope is the yellow and white flag of Vatican City, with the arms of the Holy See (blazoned: "Gules, two keys in saltire or and argent, interlacing in the rings or, beneath a tiara argent, crowned or") on the right-hand side (the "fly") in the white half of the flag (the left-hand side—the "hoist"—is yellow). The pope's escucheon does not appear on the flag. This flag was first adopted in 1808, whereas the previous flag had been red and gold. Although Pope Benedict XVI replaced the triregnum with a mitre on his personal coat of arms, it has been retained on the flag.

Pope Pius V (reigned 1566–1572), is often credited with having originated the custom whereby the pope wears white, by continuing after his election to wear the white habit of the Dominican order. In reality, the basic papal attire was white long before. The earliest document that describes it as such is the "Ordo XIII", a book of ceremonies compiled in about 1274. Later books of ceremonies describe the pope as wearing a red mantle, mozzetta, camauro and shoes, and a white cassock and stockings. Many contemporary portraits of 15th and 16th-century predecessors of Pius V show them wearing a white cassock similar to his.

The status and authority of the Pope in the Catholic Church was dogmatically defined by the First Vatican Council on 18 July 1870. In its Dogmatic Constitution of the Church of Christ, the Council established the following canons:

If anyone says that the blessed Apostle Peter was not established by the Lord Christ as the chief of all the apostles, and the visible head of the whole militant Church, or, that the same received great honour but did not receive from the same our Lord Jesus Christ directly and immediately the primacy in true and proper jurisdiction: let him be anathema.

If anyone says that it is not from the institution of Christ the Lord Himself, or by divine right that the blessed Peter has perpetual successors in the primacy over the universal Church, or that the Roman Pontiff is not the successor of blessed Peter in the same primacy, let him be anathema.

If anyone thus speaks, that the Roman Pontiff has only the office of inspection or direction, but not the full and supreme power of jurisdiction over the universal Church, not only in things which pertain to faith and morals, but also in those which pertain to the discipline and government of the Church spread over the whole world; or, that he possesses only the more important parts, but not the whole plenitude of this supreme power; or that this power of his is not ordinary and immediate, or over the churches altogether and individually, and over the pastors and the faithful altogether and individually: let him be anathema.

We, adhering faithfully to the tradition received from the beginning of the Christian faith, to the glory of God, our Saviour, the elevation of the Catholic religion and the salvation of Christian peoples, with the approbation of the sacred Council, teach and explain that the dogma has been divinely revealed: that the Roman Pontiff, when he speaks ex cathedra, that is, when carrying out the duty of the pastor and teacher of all Christians by his supreme apostolic authority he defines a doctrine of faith or morals to be held by the universal Church, through the divine assistance promised him in blessed Peter, operates with that infallibility with which the divine Redeemer wished that His church be instructed in defining doctrine on faith and morals; and so such definitions of the Roman Pontiff from himself, but not from the consensus of the Church, are unalterable. But if anyone presumes to contradict this definition of Ours, which may God forbid: let him be anathema.

In its Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (1964), the Second Vatican Council declared:

On 11 October 2012, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council 60 prominent theologians, (including Hans Küng), put out a Declaration, stating that the intention of Vatican II to balance authority in the Church has not been realised. "Many of the key insights of Vatican II have not at all, or only partially, been implemented... A principal source of present-day stagnation lies in misunderstanding and abuse affecting the exercise of authority in our Church."

The pope's official seat or cathedral is the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, and his official residence is the Apostolic Palace. He also possesses a summer residence at Castel Gandolfo, situated on the site of the ancient city of Alba Longa. Until the time of the Avignon Papacy, the residence of the pope was the Lateran Palace, donated by the Roman emperor Constantine the Great.

The pope's ecclesiastical jurisdiction (the Holy See) is distinct from his secular jurisdiction (Vatican City). It is the Holy See that conducts international relations; for hundreds of years, the papal court (the Roman Curia) has functioned as the government of the Catholic Church.

The names "Holy See" and "Apostolic see" are ecclesiastical terminology for the ordinary jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome (including the Roman Curia); the pope's various honors, powers, and privileges within the Catholic Church and the international community derive from his Episcopate of Rome in lineal succession from the Apostle Saint Peter (see Apostolic succession). Consequently, Rome has traditionally occupied a central position in the Catholic Church, although this is not necessarily so. The pope derives his pontificate from being Bishop of Rome but is not required to live there; according to the Latin formula "ubi Papa, ibi Curia", wherever the pope resides is the central government of the Church, provided that the pope is Bishop of Rome. As such, between 1309 and 1378, the popes lived in Avignon, France (see Avignon Papacy), a period often called the Babylonian captivity in allusion to the Biblical narrative of Jews of the ancient Kingdom of Judah living as captives in Babylonia.

Though the pope is the diocesan Bishop of the Diocese of Rome, he delegates most of the day-to-day work of leading the diocese to the Cardinal Vicar, who assures direct episcopal oversight of the diocese's pastoral needs, not in his own name but in that of the pope. The current Cardinal Vicar is Agostino Vallini, who was appointed to the office in June 2008.

Though the progressive Christianisation of the Roman Empire in the 4th century did not confer upon bishops civil authority within the state, the gradual withdrawal of imperial authority during the 5th century left the pope the senior imperial civilian official in Rome, as bishops were increasingly directing civil affairs in other cities of the Western Empire. This status as a secular and civil ruler was vividly displayed by Pope Leo I's confrontation with Attila in 452. The first expansion of papal rule outside of Rome came in 728 with the Donation of Sutri, which in turn was substantially increased in 754, when the Frankish ruler Pippin the Younger gave to the pope the land from his conquest of the Lombards. The pope may have utilized the forged Donation of Constantine to gain this land, which formed the core of the Papal States. This document, accepted as genuine until the 15th century, states that Constantine the Great placed the entire Western Empire of Rome under papal rule. In 800, Pope Leo III crowned the Frankish ruler Charlemagne as Roman Emperor, a major step toward establishing what later became known as the Holy Roman Empire; from that date onward the popes claimed the prerogative to crown the Emperor, though the right fell into disuse after the coronation of Charles V in 1530. Pope Pius VII was present at the coronation of Napoleon I in 1804 but did not actually perform the crowning. As mentioned above, the pope's sovereignty over the Papal States ended in 1870 with their annexation by Italy.

Popes like Alexander VI, an ambitious if spectacularly corrupt politician, and Pope Julius II, a formidable general and statesman, were not afraid to use power to achieve their own ends, which included increasing the power of the papacy. This political and temporal authority was demonstrated through the papal role in the Holy Roman Empire (especially prominent during periods of contention with the Emperors, such as during the Pontificates of Pope Gregory VII and Pope Alexander III). Papal bulls, interdict, and excommunication (or the threat thereof) have been used many times to increase papal power. The Bull "Laudabiliter" in 1155 authorized Henry II of England to invade Ireland. In 1207, Innocent III placed England under interdict until King John made his kingdom a fiefdom to the Pope, complete with yearly tribute, saying, "we offer and freely yield...to our lord Pope Innocent III and his catholic successors, the whole kingdom of England and the whole kingdom of Ireland with all their rights and appurtenences for the remission of our sins". The Bull "Inter caetera" in 1493 led to the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494, which divided the world into areas of Spanish and Portuguese rule. The Bull "Regnans in Excelsis" in 1570 excommunicated Elizabeth I of England and declared that all her subjects were released from all allegiance to her. The Bull, "Inter gravissimas", in 1582 established the Gregorian calendar.

Under international law, a serving head of state has sovereign immunity from the jurisdiction of the courts of other countries, though not from that of international tribunals. This immunity is sometimes loosely referred to as "diplomatic immunity", which is, strictly speaking, the immunity enjoyed by the "diplomatic representatives" of a head of state.

International law treats the Holy See, essentially the central government of the Catholic Church, as the juridical equal of a state. It is distinct from the state of Vatican City, existing for many centuries before the foundation of the latter. (It is common for publications and news media to use "the Vatican", "Vatican City", and even "Rome" as metonyms for the Holy See.) Most countries of the world maintain the same form of diplomatic relations with the Holy See that they entertain with other states. Even countries without those diplomatic relations participate in international organizations of which the Holy See is a full member.

It is as head of the state-equivalent worldwide religious jurisdiction of the Holy See (not of the territory of Vatican City) that the U.S. Justice Department ruled that the pope enjoys head-of-state immunity. This head-of-state immunity, recognized by the United States, must be distinguished from that envisaged under the United States' Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976, which, while recognizing the basic immunity of foreign governments from being sued in American courts, lays down nine exceptions, including commercial activity and actions in the United States by agents or employees of the foreign governments. It was in relation to the latter that, in November 2008, the United States Court of Appeals in Cincinnati decided that a case over sexual abuse by Catholic priests could proceed, provided the plaintiffs could prove that the bishops accused of negligent supervision were acting as employees or agents of the Holy See and were following official Holy See policy.

In April 2010, there was press coverage in Britain concerning a proposed plan by atheist campaigners and a prominent barrister to have Pope Benedict XVI arrested and prosecuted in the UK for alleged offences, dating from several decades before, in failing to take appropriate action regarding Catholic sex abuse cases and concerning their disputing his immunity from prosecution in that country. This was generally dismissed as "unrealistic and spurious". Another barrister said that it was a "matter of embarrassment that a senior British lawyer would want to allow himself to be associated with such a silly idea".

The pope's claim to authority is either disputed or not recognised at all by other churches. The reasons for these objections differ from denomination to denomination.

Other traditional Christian churches (Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Old Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Independent Catholic churches, etc.) accept the doctrine of Apostolic succession and, to varying extents, papal claims to a primacy of honour, while generally rejecting the pope as the successor to Peter in any other sense than that of other bishops. Primacy is regarded as a consequence of the pope's position as bishop of the original capital city of the Roman Empire, a definition explicitly spelled out in the 28th canon of the Council of Chalcedon. These churches see no foundation to papal claims of "universal immediate jurisdiction", or to claims of papal infallibility. Several of these churches refer to such claims as "ultramontanism".

In 1973, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs and the USA National Committee of the Lutheran World Federation in the official Catholic–Lutheran dialogue included this passage in a larger statement on papal primacy:

Protestant denominations of Christianity reject the claims of Petrine primacy of honor, Petrine primacy of jurisdiction, and papal infallibility. These denominations vary from simply not accepting the pope's claim to authority as legitimate and valid, to believing that the pope is the Antichrist from 1 John 2:18, the Man of Sin from 2 Thessalonians 2:3–12, and the Beast out of the Earth from Revelation 13:11–18.
This sweeping rejection is held by, among others, some denominations of Lutherans: Confessional Lutherans hold that the pope is the Antichrist, stating that this article of faith is part of a "quia" ("because") rather than "quatenus" ("insofar as") subscription to the Book of Concord. In 1932, one of these Confessional churches, the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS), adopted "A Brief Statement of the Doctrinal Position of the Missouri Synod", which a small number of Lutheran church bodies now hold. The Lutheran Churches of the Reformation, the Concordia Lutheran Conference, the Church of the Lutheran Confession, and the Illinois Lutheran Conference  all hold to the "Brief Statement", which the LCMS places on its website. The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS), another Confessional Lutheran church that declares the Papacy to be the Antichrist, released its own statement, the "Statement on the Antichrist", in 1959. The WELS still holds to this statement.

Historically, Protestants objected to the papacy's claim of temporal power over all secular governments, including territorial claims in Italy, the papacy's complex relationship with secular states such as the Roman and Byzantine Empires, and the autocratic character of the papal office. In Western Christianity these objections both contributed to and are products of the Protestant Reformation.

Groups sometimes form around antipopes, who claim the Pontificate without being canonically and properly elected to it.

Traditionally, this term was reserved for claimants with a significant following of cardinals or other clergy. The existence of an antipope is usually due either to doctrinal controversy within the Church (heresy) or to confusion as to who is the legitimate pope at the time (schism). Briefly in the 15th century, three separate lines of popes claimed authenticity (see Papal Schism). Even Catholics do not all agree whether certain historical figures were popes or antipopes. Though antipope movements were significant at one time, they are now overwhelmingly minor fringe causes.

In the earlier centuries of Christianity, the title "Pope", meaning "father", had been used by all bishops. Some popes used the term and others did not. Eventually, the title became associated especially with the Bishop of Rome. In a few cases, the term is used for other Christian clerical authorities.

In English, Catholic priests are still addressed as "father", but the term "pope" is reserved for the head of the church hierarchy.

"Black Pope" is a name that was popularly, but unofficially, given to the Superior General of the Society of Jesus due to the Jesuits' importance within the Church. This name, based on the black colour of his cassock, was used to suggest a parallel between him and the "White Pope" (since the time of Pope Pius V the popes dress in white) and the Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (formerly called the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith), whose red cardinal's cassock gave him the name of the "Red Pope" in view of the authority over all territories that were not considered in some way Catholic. In the present time this cardinal has power over mission territories for Catholicism, essentially the Churches of Africa and Asia, but in the past his competence extended also to all lands where Protestants or Eastern Christianity was dominant. Some remnants of this situation remain, with the result that, for instance, New Zealand is still in the care of this Congregation.

Since the papacy of Heraclas in the 3rd century, the Bishop of Alexandria in both the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria and the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria continues to be called "Pope", the former being called "Coptic Pope" or, more properly, "Pope and Patriarch of All Africa on the Holy Orthodox and Apostolic Throne of Saint Mark the Evangelist and Holy Apostle" and the latter called "Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa".

In the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, Russian Orthodox Church and Serbian Orthodox Church, it is not unusual for a village priest to be called a "pope" ("поп" "pop"). However, this should be differentiated from the words used for the head of the Catholic Church (Bulgarian "папа" "papa", Russian "папа римский" "papa rimskiy").

Some new religious movements within Christianity, especially those that have disassociated themselves from the Catholic Church yet retain a Catholic hierarchical framework, have used the designation "pope" for a founder or current leader. Examples include the African Legio Maria Church and the European Palmarian Catholic Church in Spain. The Cao Dai, a Vietnamese faith that duplicates the Roman Catholic hierarchy, is similarly headed by a pope.

Although the average reign of the pope from the Middle Ages was a decade, a number of those whose reign lengths can be determined from contemporary historical data are the following:During the Western Schism, Avignon Pope Benedict XIII (1394–1423) ruled for 28 years, seven months and 12 days, which would place him third in the above list. However, since he is regarded as an anti-pope, he is not mentioned in the list above.

There have been a number of popes whose reign lasted about a month or less. In the following list the number of calendar days includes partial days. Thus, for example, if a pope's reign commenced on 1 August and he died on 2 August, this would count as having reigned for two calendar days.

Stephen (23–26 March 752) died of stroke three days after his election, and before his consecration as a bishop. He is not recognized as a valid pope, but was added to the lists of popes in the 15th century as "Stephen II", causing difficulties in enumerating later popes named Stephen. The Holy See's "Annuario Pontificio", in its list of popes and antipopes, attaches a footnote to its mention of Stephen II (III):

Published every year by the Roman Curia, the "Annuario Pontificio" attaches no consecutive numbers to the popes, stating that it is impossible to decide which side represented at various times the legitimate succession, in particular regarding Pope Leo VIII, Pope Benedict V and some mid-11th-century popes.

Since the Apostolic Age, the Bishop of Rome, like other bishops, was chosen by the consensus of the clergy and laity of the diocese. The body of electors was more precisely defined when, in 1059, the College of Cardinals was designated the sole body of electors. Since then, other details of the process have developed. In 1970, Pope Paul VI limited the electors to cardinals under 80 years of age in "Ingravescentem aetatem". The procedures were established by Pope John Paul II in his apostolic constitution "Universi Dominici gregis" as amended by Pope Benedict XVI in 2007 and 2013. A two-thirds supermajority vote is required to elect the new pope.

Papal conclave

A papal conclave is a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Bishop of Rome, also known as the Pope. The pope is considered by Roman Catholics to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and earthly head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Concerns around political interference led to reforms after the interregnum of 1268–1271 and Pope Gregory X's decree during the Second Council of Lyons in 1274 that the cardinal electors should be locked in seclusion "cum clave" (Latin for "with a key") and not permitted to leave until a new Bishop of Rome had been elected. Conclaves are now held in the Sistine Chapel of the Apostolic Palace.

The procedures relating to the election of the pope have undergone almost two millennia of development. Procedures similar to the present system were introduced in 1274 whenGregory X promulgated "Ubi periculum" following the action of the magistrates of Viterbo during the interregnum of 1268–1271.

The process was further refined by Gregory XV with his 1621 bull "Aeterni Patris Filius", which established the requirement of a two-thirds majority of cardinal electors to elect a pope. The Third Lateran Council had initially set the requirement that two-thirds of the cardinals were needed to elect a pope in 1179. This requirement had varied since then, depending on whether the winning candidate was allowed to vote for himself, in which cases the required majority was two-thirds plus one vote. "Aeterni Patris Filius" prohibited this practice and established two-thirds as the standard needed for election. "Aeterni Patris Filius" did not eliminate the possibility of election by acclamation, but did require that a secret ballot take place first before a pope could be elected.

As early Christian communities emerged, they elected bishops, chosen by the clergy and laity with the assistance of the bishops of neighbouring dioceses. St. Cyprian (died 258) says that Pope Cornelius (in office 251–253) was chosen as Bishop of Rome "by the decree of God and of His Church, by the testimony of nearly all the clergy, by the college of aged bishops ["sacerdotum"], and of good men". As in other dioceses, the clergy of the Diocese of Rome was the electoral body for the Bishop of Rome. Instead of casting votes, the bishop was selected by general consensus or by acclamation. The candidate would then be submitted to the people for their general approval or disapproval. This lack of precision in the election procedures occasionally gave rise to rival popes or antipopes.

The right of the laity to reject the person elected was abolished by a Synod held in the Lateran in 769, but restored to Roman noblemen by Pope Nicholas I during a Synod of Rome in 862. The pope was also subjected to oaths of loyalty to the Holy Roman Emperor, who had the duty of providing security and public peace in Rome. A major change came in 1059, when Pope Nicholas II decreed in "In Nomine Domini" that the cardinals were to elect a candidate, who would take office after receiving the assent of the clergy and laity. The cardinal bishops were to meet first and discuss the candidates before summoning the cardinal priests and cardinal deacons for the actual vote. The Second Council of the Lateran in 1139 removed the requirement for obtaining the assent of the lower clergy and the laity, while the Third Council of the Lateran in 1179 gave equal rights to the entire College of Cardinals when electing a new pope.

Through much of the Middle Ages and Renaissance the Catholic Church had only a small number of cardinals at any one time, as few as seven under either Pope Alexander IV (1254–1261) or Pope John XXI (1276–1277). The difficulty of travel further reduced the number arriving at conclaves. The small electorate magnified the significance of each vote and made it all but impossible to displace familial or political allegiances. Conclaves lasted months and even years. In his 1274 decree requiring the electors be locked in seclusion, Gregory X also limited each cardinal elector to two servants and rationed their food progressively when a conclave reached its fourth and ninth days. The cardinals disliked these rules; Pope Adrian V temporarily suspended them in 1276 and John XXI's "Licet felicis recordationis" revoked them later that same year. Lengthy elections resumed and continued to be the norm until 1294, when Pope Celestine V reinstated the 1274 rules. Long interregna followed: in 1314–1316 during the Avignon Papacy, where the original conclaves were dispersed by besieging mercenaries and not reconvened for almost two years; and in 1415–1417, as a result of the Western Schism.

In 1587 Pope Sixtus V limited the number of cardinals to 70, following the precedent of Moses who was assisted by 70 elders in governing the Children of Israel: six cardinal bishops, 50 cardinal priests, and 14 cardinal deacons. Beginning with the attempts of Pope John XXIII (1958–1963) to broaden the representation of nations in the College of Cardinals, that number has increased. In 1970 Paul VI ruled that cardinals who reach the age of eighty before the start of a conclave are ineligible to participate. In 1975 he limited the number of cardinal electors to 120. Though this remains the theoretical limit, John Paul II (in office 1978–2005) exceeded this for short periods of time. He also changed the age limit slightly, so that cardinals who turn 80 before a papal vacancy (not before conclave start) can not serve as electors.

Originally, lay status did not bar election to the See of Rome. Bishops of dioceses were sometimes elected while still catechumens, such as the case of St. Ambrose, who became Bishop of Milan in 374. In the wake of the violent dispute over the 767 election of Antipope Constantine II, Pope Stephen III held the synod of 769, which decreed that only a cardinal priest or cardinal deacon could be elected, specifically excluding those that are already bishops. Church practice, however, deviated from this rule as early as 817 and fully ignored it from 882 with the election of Pope Marinus I, the Bishop of Caere. Nicholas II, in the synod of 1059, formally codified existing practice by decreeing that preference was to be given to the clergy of Rome, but leaving the cardinal bishops free to select a cleric from elsewhere if they so decided. The Council of 1179 rescinded these restrictions on eligibility.

Pope Urban VI in 1378 became the last pope elected from outside the College of Cardinals. The last person elected as pope who was not already an ordained priest or deacon was the cardinal-deacon Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, elected as Pope Leo X in 1513. His successor, Pope Adrian VI, was the last to be elected (1522) "in absentia". Archbishop Giovanni Montini of Milan received several votes in the 1958 conclave though not yet a cardinal. As the Catholic Church holds that women cannot be validly ordained, women are not eligible for the papacy. Though the pope is the Bishop of Rome, he need not be of Italian background., the three most recent conclaves have elected a Pole (1978), a German (2005), and an Argentinian (2013).

A simple majority vote sufficed until 1179, when the Third Council of the Lateran increased the required majority to two-thirds. As cardinals were not allowed to vote for themselves (after 1621), the ballots were designed to ensure secrecy while at the same time preventing self-voting. In 1945 Pope Pius XII removed the prohibition on a cardinal voting for himself, increasing the requisite majority to two-thirds plus one at all times. He eliminated as well the need for signed ballots. His successor John XXIII immediately reinstated the two-thirds majority if the number of cardinal electors voting is divisible by three, with a rounding up to two-thirds plus one otherwise. Paul VI reinstated Pius XII's procedure thirteen years later, but John Paul II overturned it again. In 1996, John Paul II's constitution allowed election by absolute majority if deadlock prevailed after thirty-three or thirty-four ballots (thirty-four ballots if a ballot took place on the first afternoon of the conclave). In 2007 Benedict XVI rescinded John Paul II's change (which had been criticised as effectively abolishing the two-thirds majority requirement, as any majority would suffice to block the election until a simple majority was enough to elect the next pope), reaffirming the requirement of a two-thirds majority.

Electors formerly made choices by accessus, acclamation ("per inspirationem"), adoration, compromise ("per compromissum") or scrutiny ("per scrutinium"). The last election by compromise is considered to be that of Pope John XXII in 1316, and the last election by acclamation that of Pope Innocent XI in the 1676 conclave. "Universi Dominici gregis" formally abolished the long unused methods of acclamation and compromise in 1996, making scrutiny now the only approved method for the election of a new pope.

For a significant part of the Church's history, powerful monarchs and governments influenced the choice of its leaders. For example, the Roman emperors once held considerable sway in the elections of popes. In 418, Emperor Honorius settled a controversial election, upholding Pope Boniface I over the challenger Antipope Eulalius. On the request of Boniface I, Honorius ordered that in future cases, any disputed election would be settled by a fresh election. After the demise of the Western Roman Empire, influence passed to the Ostrogothic Kings of Italy and in 533, Pope John II formally recognised the right of the Ostrogothic monarchs to ratify elections. By 537 the Ostrogothic monarchy had been overthrown, and power passed to the Byzantine emperors. A procedure was adopted whereby officials were required to notify the Exarch of Ravenna upon the death of a pope before proceeding with the election. Once the electors arrived at a choice, they were required to send a delegation to Constantinople requesting the emperor's consent, which was necessary before the individual elected could take office. Travel to and from Constantinople caused lengthy delays. When Pope Benedict II (684-685) complained about them, Emperor Constantine IV (in office 654-685) acquiesced, ending the requirement for emperors to confirm elections. Thereafter, the Emperor was only required to be notified. The last pope to notify a Byzantine emperor was Pope Zachary in 741.

In the 9th century, the Holy Roman Empire came to exert control over papal elections. While Charlemagne (Emperor from 800 to 814) and Louis the Pious (Emperor from 813 to 840) did not interfere with the Church, Lothair I (Emperor from 817 to 855) claimed that an election could only take place in the presence of imperial ambassadors. In 898 riots forced Pope John IX to recognise the superintendence of the Holy Roman Emperor. At the same time, the Roman nobility also continued to exert great influence, especially during the tenth-century period known as "saeculum obscurum" (Latin for "the dark age").

In 1059 the same papal bull that restricted suffrage to the cardinals also recognised the authority of the Holy Roman Emperor (at the time Henry IV), but only as a concession made by the pope, declaring that the Holy Roman Emperor had no authority to intervene in elections except where permitted to do so by papal agreements. Pope Gregory VII (in office 1073-1085) was the last Pope to submit to the interference of the Holy Roman Emperors. The breach between him and the Holy Roman Empire caused by the Investiture Controversy led to the abolition of the Emperor's role. In 1122 the Holy Roman Empire acceded to the Concordat of Worms, accepting the papal decision.

From about 1600, certain Catholic monarchs claimed a "jus exclusivae" (right of exclusion), i.e. a veto over papal elections, exercised through a crown-cardinal. By an informal convention, each state claiming the veto could exercise the right once per conclave. Therefore, a crown-cardinal did not announce his veto until the very last moment when the candidate in question seemed likely to get elected. No vetoes could be employed after an election. After the Holy Roman Empire dissolved in 1806, its veto power devolved upon the Austrian Empire. The last exercise of the veto occurred in 1903, when Prince Jan Puzyna de Kosielsko informed the College of Cardinals that Austria opposed the election of Mariano Rampolla. Consequently, the College elected Giuseppe Sarto as Pope Pius X, who issued the Constitution "Commissum nobis" six months later, declaring that any cardinal who communicated his government's veto in the future would suffer excommunication "latae sententiae".

To resolve prolonged deadlocks in papal elections in the earlier years, local authorities often resorted to the forced seclusion of the cardinal electors, such as first in the city of Rome in 1241, and possibly before that in Perugia in 1216. In 1269, when the forced seclusion of the cardinals alone failed to produce a pope, the city of Viterbo refused to send in any materials except bread and water. When even this failed to produce a result, the townspeople removed the roof of the Palazzo dei Papi in their attempt to speed up the election.

In an attempt to avoid future lengthy elections, Gregory X introduced stringent rules with the 1274 promulgation of "Ubi periculum". Cardinals were to be secluded in a closed area and not accorded individual rooms. No cardinal was allowed, unless ill, to be attended by more than two servants. Food was supplied through a window to avoid outside contact. After three days of the conclave, the cardinals were to receive only one dish a day; after another five days, they were to receive just bread and water. During the conclave, no cardinal was to receive any ecclesiastical revenue.

Adrian V abolished Gregory X's strict regulations in 1276, but Celestine V, elected in 1294 following a two-year vacancy, restored them. In 1562 Pius IV issued a papal bull that introduced regulations relating to the enclosure of the conclave and other procedures. Gregory XV issued two bulls that covered the most minute of details relating to the election; the first, in 1621, concerned electoral processes, while the other, in 1622, fixed the ceremonies to be observed. In December 1904 Pope Pius X issued an apostolic constitution consolidating almost all the previous rules, making some changes, "Vacante sede apostolica". John Paul II instituted several reforms in 1996.

The location of the conclaves became fixed only in the fourteenth century. Since the end of the Western Schism in 1417, however, elections have always taken place in Rome (except in 1799–1800, when French troops occupying Rome forced the election to be held in Venice), and normally in what, since the Lateran Treaties of 1929, has become the independent Vatican City State. Since 1846, when the Quirinal Palace was used, the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican has served as the location of the election. Popes have often fine-tuned the rules for the election of their successors: Pope Pius XII's "Vacantis Apostolicae Sedis" (1945) governed the conclave of 1958, Pope John XXIII's "Summi Pontificis electio" (1962) that of 1963, Pope Paul VI's "Romano Pontifici eligendo" (1975) the two conclaves of 1978, John Paul II's "Universi Dominici Gregis" (1996) that of 2005, and two amendments by Benedict XVI (2007, 2013) that of 2013.

In 1996, John Paul II promulgated a new Apostolic Constitution, called "Universi Dominici gregis", which with a slight modification by Pope Benedict XVI now governs the election of the pope, abolishing all previous constitutions on the matter, but preserving many procedures that date to much earlier times.

Under "Universi Dominici gregis", the cardinals are to be lodged in a purpose-built edifice, the "Domus Sanctae Marthae", but are to continue to vote in the Sistine Chapel.

Several duties are performed by the Dean of the College of Cardinals, who is always a Cardinal Bishop. If the Dean is not entitled to participate in the conclave owing to age, his place is taken by the Sub-Dean, who is also always a Cardinal Bishop. If the Sub-Dean also cannot participate, the senior Cardinal Bishop participating performs the functions.

Since the College of Cardinals is a small body, there have been proposals that the electorate should be expanded. Proposed reforms include a plan to replace the College of Cardinals as the electoral body with the Synod of Bishops, which includes many more members. Under present procedure, however, the Synod may only meet when called by the pope. "Universi Dominici gregis" explicitly provides that even if a synod or an ecumenical council is in session at the time of a pope's death, it may not perform the election. Upon the pope's death, either body's proceedings are suspended, to be resumed only upon the order of the new pope.

It is considered poor form to campaign for the position of pope. However, there is inevitably always much speculation about which cardinals have serious prospects of being elected. Speculation tends to mount when a pope is ill or aged and shortlists of potential candidates appear in the media. A cardinal who is considered to be a prospect for the papacy is described informally as a "papabile" (an adjective used substantively: the plural form is "papabili"), a term coined by Italian-speaking Vatican watchers in the mid-twentieth century, literally meaning "pope-able".

The death of the pope is verified by the Cardinal Camerlengo, or Chamberlain, who traditionally performed the task by calling out his Christian (not papal) name three times in the presence of the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations, and of the Cleric Prelates, Secretary and Chancellor of the Apostolic Camera. The Cardinal Camerlengo takes possession of the Ring of the Fisherman worn by the pope; the ring, along with the papal seal, is later destroyed before the College of Cardinals. The tradition originated to avoid forgery of documents, but today merely is a symbol of the end of the pope's reign.

During the "sede vacante", as the papal vacancy is known, certain limited powers pass to the College of Cardinals, which is convoked by the Dean of the College of Cardinals. All cardinals are obliged to attend the General Congregation of Cardinals, except those whose health does not permit, or who are over eighty (but those cardinals may choose to attend if they please). The Particular Congregation, which deals with the day-to-day matters of the Church, includes the Cardinal Camerlengo and the three Cardinal Assistants—one Cardinal-Bishop, one Cardinal-Priest and one Cardinal-Deacon—chosen by lot. Every three days, new Cardinal Assistants are chosen by lot. The Cardinal Camerlengo and Cardinal Assistants are responsible, among other things, for maintaining the election's secrecy.

The Congregations must make certain arrangements in respect of the pope's burial, which by tradition takes place within four to six days of the pope's death, leaving time for pilgrims to see the dead pontiff, and is to be followed by a nine-day period of mourning (this is known as the "novemdiales," Latin for "nine days"). The Congregations also fix the date and time of the commencement of the conclave. The conclave normally takes place fifteen days after the death of the pope, but the Congregations may extend the period to a maximum of twenty days in order to permit other cardinals to arrive in the Vatican City.

A vacancy in the papal office may also result from a papal resignation. Until the resignation of Benedict XVI on 28 February 2013, no pope had abdicated since Gregory XII in 1415. In 1996 Pope John Paul II, in his Apostolic Constitution "Universi Dominici gregis", anticipated the possibility of resignation when he specified that the procedures he set out in that document should be observed "even if the vacancy of the Apostolic See should occur as a result of the resignation of the Supreme Pontiff".

In the case of a papal resignation, the Ring of the Fisherman is placed in the custody of the Cardinal Camerlengo; in the presence of the College of Cardinals, the Cardinal Camerlengo marks an X with a small silver hammer and chisel into the Ring, disfiguring it so it may no longer be used for signing and sealing official papal documents.

In his book, "Light Of The World: The Pope, The Church and The Signs Of The Times", Benedict XVI espoused the idea of abdication on health grounds, which already had some theological respectability.

The cardinals hear two sermons before the election: one before actually entering the conclave, and one once they are settled in the Sistine Chapel. In both cases, the sermons are meant to lay out the current state of the Church, and to suggest the qualities necessary for a pope to possess in that specific time. The first preacher in the 2005 conclave was Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, the preacher of the papal household and a member of the Capuchin Franciscan order, who spoke at one of the meetings of the cardinals held before the actual day when the conclave began. Cardinal Tomáš Špidlík, a former professor at the Pontifical Oriental Institute and a non-voting member (due to age) of the College of Cardinals, spoke just before the doors were finally closed for the conclave.

On the morning of the day designated by the Congregations of Cardinals, the cardinal electors assemble in Saint Peter's Basilica to celebrate Mass. Then, they gather in the afternoon in the Pauline Chapel of the Palace of the Vatican and process to the Sistine Chapel while singing the Litany of the Saints. The Cardinals will also sing the Veni Creator Spiritus then take an oath to observe the procedures set down by the apostolic constitutions; to, if elected, defend the liberty of the Holy See; to maintain secrecy; and to disregard the instructions of secular authorities on voting. The Cardinal Dean reads the oath aloud in full; in order of precedence (where their rank is the same, their seniority is taken as precedence), the other cardinal electors repeat the oath, while touching the Gospels. The oath is:

After all the cardinals present have taken the oath, the Master of the Papal Liturgical Celebrations orders all individuals other than the cardinal electors and conclave participants to leave the Chapel. Traditionally, he stands at the door of the Sistine Chapel and calls out: ""Extra omnes!"" (Latin for, roughly, "Everybody else, get out!") He then closes the door. In modern practice, the Master of the Papal Liturgical Celebrations does not have to stand at the door of the Sistine Chapel—during the 2013 conclave, the Master Guido Marini stood in front of the altar and gave the command through a microphone and only went to the chapel doors to close them after the outsiders had left.

The Master himself may remain, as may one ecclesiastic designated by the Congregations prior to the commencement of the election. The ecclesiastic makes a speech concerning the problems facing the Church and on the qualities the new pope needs to have. After the speech concludes, the ecclesiastic leaves. Following the recitation of prayers, the Cardinal Dean asks if any doubts relating to procedure remain. After the clarification of the doubts, the election may commence. Cardinals who arrive after the conclave has begun are admitted nevertheless. A sick cardinal may leave the conclave and later be readmitted; a cardinal who leaves for any reason other than illness may not return to the conclave.

Although in the past cardinal electors could be accompanied by attendants ("conclavists"), now only a nurse may accompany a cardinal who for reasons of ill-health, as confirmed by the Congregation of Cardinals, needs such assistance. The Secretary of the College of Cardinals, the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations, two Masters of Ceremonies, two officers of the Papal Sacristy and an ecclesiastic assisting the Dean of the College of Cardinals are also admitted to the conclave. Priests are available to hear confessions in different languages; two doctors are also admitted. Finally, a strictly limited number of servant staff are permitted for housekeeping and the preparing and serving of meals.

Secrecy is maintained during the conclave; the cardinals as well as the conclavists and staff are forbidden to disclose any information relating to the election. Cardinal electors may not correspond or converse with anyone outside the conclave, by post, radio, telephone, internet and social media, or otherwise and eavesdropping is an offense punishable by excommunication "latae sententiae". Only three cardinals electors are permitted to communicate with the outside world under grave circumstances, prior to approval of the College, to fulfil their duties: the Major Penitentiary, the Cardinal Vicar for the Diocese of Rome, and the Vicar General for the Vatican City State.

Before the conclave that elected Pope Francis, the Sistine Chapel was "swept" using the latest electronic devices to detect any hidden "bugs" or surveillance devices (there were no reports that any were found, but in previous conclaves press reporters who had disguised themselves as conclave servants were discovered). "Universi Dominici gregis" specifically prohibits media such as newspapers, the radio, and television. Wi-Fi access is blocked in Vatican City and wireless signal jammers are deployed at the Sistine Chapel to prevent any form of electronic communications to or from the Cardinal electors.

On the afternoon of the first day, one ballot (referred to as a "scrutiny") may be held, but is not required. If a ballot takes place on the afternoon of the first day and no-one is elected, or no ballot had taken place, a maximum of four ballots are held on each successive day: two in each morning and two in each afternoon. Before voting in the morning and again before voting in the afternoon, the electors take an oath to obey the rules of the conclave. If no result is obtained after three vote days of balloting, the process is suspended for a maximum of one day for prayer and an address by the senior Cardinal Deacon. After seven further ballots, the process may again be similarly suspended, with the address now being delivered by the senior Cardinal Priest. If, after another seven ballots, no result is achieved, voting is suspended once more, the address being delivered by the senior Cardinal Bishop. After a further seven ballots, there shall be a day of prayer, reflection and dialogue. In the following ballots, only the two names who received the most votes in the last ballot shall be eligible in a runoff election where a two-third majority is still required. However, the two people who are being voted on, if Cardinal electors, shall not themselves have the right to vote.

The process of voting comprises three phases: the "pre-scrutiny", the "scrutiny", and the "post-scrutiny."

During the pre-scrutiny, the Masters of the Ceremonies prepare ballot papers bearing the words "Eligo in Summum Pontificem" ("I elect as Supreme Pontiff") and provide at least two to each cardinal elector. As the cardinals begin to write down their votes, the Secretary of the College of Cardinals, the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations and the Masters of Ceremonies exit; the junior Cardinal Deacon then closes the door. The junior Cardinal Deacon then draws by lot nine names; the first three become Scrutineers, the second three "Infirmarii" and the last three Revisers. New Scrutineers, "Infirmarii" and Revisers are not selected again after the first scrutiny; the same nine cardinals perform the same task for the second scrutiny. After lunch, the election resumes with the oath to obey the rules of the conclave taken anew when the cardinals again assemble in the Sistine Chapel. Nine names are chosen for new scrutineers, infirmarii, and revisers. The third scrutiny then commences, and if necessary, a fourth immediately follows. No changes in these rules were made by Benedict XVI in 2007. These rules were followed, so far as is known, given the secrecy of a conclave, in electing Pope Francis in March 2013.

The scrutiny phase of the election is as follows: The cardinal electors proceed, in order of precedence, to take their completed ballots (which bear only the name of the individual voted for) to the altar, where the Scrutineers stand. Before casting the ballot, each cardinal elector takes a Latin oath, which translates to: "I call as my witness Christ the Lord who will be my judge, that my vote is given to the one who before God I think should be elected." If any cardinal elector is in the Chapel, but cannot proceed to the altar due to infirmity, the last Scrutineer may go to him and take his ballot after the oath is recited. If any cardinal elector is by reason of infirmity confined to his room, the "Infirmarii" go to their rooms with ballot papers and a box. Any such sick cardinals take the oath and then complete the ballot papers. When the "Infirmarii" return to the Chapel, the ballots are counted to ensure that their number matches with the number of ill cardinals; thereafter, they are deposited in the appropriate receptacle. This oath is taken by all cardinals as they cast their ballots. If no one is chosen on the first scrutiny, then a second scrutiny immediately follows. A maximum total of four scrutinies can be taken each day, two in the morning and two in the afternoon.

The oath when casting one's vote is therefore anonymous, since the name of the elector is no longer signed on the ballot with that of the candidate. (Previously, the ballot was signed by the elector, who included his motiff [unique identification code]. Then he folded it over at two places to cover his signature and motiff. After this, it was sealed with wax to result in a semi-secret ballot. See example above.) This was the procedure prior to 1945. The example above is a copy of the old three section semi-secret ballot, which was last used in the conclave of 1939. There was no oath taken when actually casting ballots, prior to 1621. Completely secret ballots (at the option of the cardinals present and voting) were sometimes used prior to 1621, but these secret ballots had no oath taken when the vote was actually cast. At some conclaves prior to 1621, the cardinals verbally voted and sometimes stood in groups to facilitate counting the votes cast. The signature and motiff of the elector covered by two folded-over parts of the ballot paper was added by Gregory XV in 1621, to prevent anyone from casting the deciding vote for himself. Cardinal Pole of England refused to cast the deciding vote for himself in 1549 (and was not elected), but in 1492 Cardinal Borgia (Pope Alexander VI) did cast the deciding vote for himself. Faced by the mortal challenge to the papacy emanating from Protestantism, and fearing schism due to several stormy conclaves in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, Gregory XV established this procedure to prevent any cardinal from casting the deciding vote for himself. Since 1945, a cardinal can again cast the deciding vote for himself, though the ⅔ majority rule has always been continued, except when John Paul II had modified that rule in 1996 (after 33 ballots, a simple majority was sufficient), with the ⅔ majority rule restored in 2007 by Benedict XVI.

Prior to 1621, the only oath taken was that of obedience to the rules of the conclave in force at that time, when the cardinals entered the conclave and the doors were locked, and each morning and afternoon as they entered the Sistine Chapel to vote. Gregory XV added the additional oath, taken when each cardinal casts his ballot, to prevent cardinals wasting time in casting "courtesy votes" and instead narrowing the number of realistic candidates for the papal throne to perhaps only two or three. Speed in electing a pope was important, and that meant using an oath so as to get the cardinals down to the serious business of electing a new pope and narrowing the number of potentially electable candidates. The reforms of Gregory XV in 1621 and reaffirmed in 1622 created the written detailed step-by-step procedure used in choosing a pope; a procedure that was essentially the same as that which was used in 2013 to elect Pope Francis. The biggest change since 1621 was the elimination of the rule that required the electors to sign their ballots resulting in the detailed voting procedure of scrutiny making use of anonymous oaths. This was perhaps the most significant change in the modern era. It was a significant change to the step-by-step voting procedure, since that detailed voting procedure was first created in 1621. It was Pius XII who made this change in 1945.

Once all votes have been cast, the first Scrutineer chosen shakes the container, and the last Scrutineer removes and counts the ballots. If the number of ballots does not correspond to the number of cardinal electors present (including sick cardinals in their rooms), the ballots are burnt, unread, and the vote is repeated. If, however, no irregularities are observed, the ballots may be opened and the votes counted. Each ballot is unfolded by the first Scrutineer; all three Scrutineers separately write down the name indicated on the ballot. The last of the Scrutineers reads the name aloud.

Once all of the ballots have been opened, the final post-scrutiny phase begins.

The Scrutineers add up all of the votes, and the Revisers check the ballots and the names on the Scrutineers' lists to ensure that no error was made. The ballots are then all burned by the Scrutineers with the assistance of the Secretary of the College and the Masters of Ceremonies. If the first scrutiny held in any given morning or afternoon does not result in an election, the cardinals proceed to the next scrutiny immediately. The papers from both scrutinies are then burned together at the end of the second scrutiny.

The color of the smoke indicates the results to the people assembled in St Peter's Square. Dark smoke (fumata nera) indicates that the ballot did not result in an election, while white smoke (fumata bianca) announces that a new pope was chosen. Originally, in the event a pope was not elected, damp straw was added to the fire to create dark smoke. In the event a new pope was elected, the ballots were burned alone, creating white smoke.

Prior to 1945 (when Pius XII changed the form of ballot to use anonymous oaths, first carried out in 1958), the sealing wax on the complex type ballots illustrated above had the effect of making the smoke from burning the ballots either black or white, depending on whether or not damp straw was added. Until the 20th century, sealing wax customarily had beeswax mixed into its composition. The use of wax made solely from animal fat does not give as much white colored smoke, as does wax that includes beeswax. In the 1939 conclave there was some confusion over the smoke color, which was even more apparent in the 1958 conclave. This explains the confusion over the color of the smoke in the 1958 Papal conclave, caused by the lack of sealing wax on the ballots. The Siri thesis was based on the confusion over the smoke color on the first day of that conclave.

Since 1963, chemicals have been added to the burning process, and beginning in 2005, bells ring after a successful election to augment the white smoke.

During the 2013 conclave, the Vatican disclosed the chemicals used to color the smoke:

Once the election concludes, the Cardinal Dean summons the Secretary of the College of Cardinals and the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations into the hall. The Cardinal Dean then asks the pope-elect if he assents to the election, saying in Latin: ""Acceptasne electionem de te canonice factam in Summum Pontificem?" (Do you accept your canonical election as Supreme Pontiff?)" There is no requirement that the pope-elect do so and he is free to respond ""Non accepto"" (I do not accept).

In practice, any cardinal who intends not to accept will explicitly state this "before" he receives a sufficient number of votes to become pope, as Giovanni Colombo did in October 1978.

If he accepts, and is already a bishop, he immediately takes office. If he is not a bishop, however, he must be first consecrated as one before he can assume office. If a priest is elected, the Cardinal Dean consecrates him bishop; if a layman is elected, then the Cardinal Dean first ordains him deacon, then priest, and only then consecrates him as bishop. Only after becoming a bishop does the pope-elect take office. These functions of the Dean are assumed, if necessary, by the sub-Dean, and if the sub-Dean is also impeded, they are assumed by the senior cardinal-bishop in attendance. In 2005 the Dean himself—Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger—was elected pope. In 2013, the Dean and sub-Dean were not in attendance (over the age limit), and these functions were assumed by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re.

Since 533, the new pope has also decided on his regnal name. Pope John II was the first to adopt a new papal name; he felt that his original name, Mercurius, was inappropriate, as it was also the name of a Roman god. In most cases, even if such considerations are absent, popes tend to choose papal names different from their baptismal names; the last pope to reign under his baptismal name was Pope Marcellus II (1555). After the newly elected pope accepts his election, the Cardinal Dean asks him about his papal name, saying in Latin: ""Quo nomine vis vocari?" (By what name do you wish to be called?)" After the papal name is chosen, the officials are readmitted to the conclave, and the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Ceremonies writes a document recording the acceptance and the new name of the pope.

In the past, when the cardinals were voting during the conclave, they sat on canopied thrones symbolizing the cardinals' collective governance of the church during the period of "sede vacante". Upon the acceptance by the new pope of his election, all other cardinals in attendance would each pull a cord and lower the canopies above their respective thrones signifying an end to the period of collective governance and only the newly elected pope's canopy remained unlowered. The last time canopied thrones were used was during the 1963 conclave. Beginning with the 1978 August conclave canopied thrones were no longer used due to the lack of space resulting from the large increase in the number of cardinal electors.

At the end of the conclave, the new pope if he so chose, would give his cardinalitial zucchetto or skull cap to the secretary of the conclave, indicating the secretary would be made cardinal at the next consistory to create cardinals. Prior to the 2013 conclave, this tradition was last followed at the 1958 conclave by the newly elected Pope John XXIII, who bestowed his cardinal's skull cap on Alberto di Jorio and created him a cardinal at the consistory on 15 December of that year. In 2013 the Portuguese section of Vatican Radio reported that at the conclusion of the 2013 conclave, the newly elected Pope Francis bestowed his cardinalitial zucchetto on Archbishop Lorenzo Baldisseri the secretary of that conclave and on 22 February 2014 at Pope Francis' first consistory, Baldisseri was formally made a cardinal with the title of Cardinal-Deacon of Sant'Anselmo all'Aventino.

Then, the new pope goes to the "Room of Tears", a small red room next to the Sistine Chapel; the room has the nickname because of the strong emotions experienced by the new pope. The new pope dresses by himself, choosing a set of pontifical choir robes—consisting of a white cassock, rochet, and red mozzetta—from three sizes provided. He then wears a gold corded pectoral cross, a red and gold embroidered stole, and then dons the white papal zucchetto on his head. In 2013, Pope Francis dispensed with the red mozzetta, rochet, and gold pectoral cross, wearing only the white cassock and his own pectoral cross when he appeared on the central balcony. He also did not emerge wearing the stole, vesting in it only to impart the Apostolic Blessing and removing it shortly after.

Next, the Cardinal Protodeacon (the senior Cardinal Deacon) appears at the loggia of the Basilica to proclaim the new pope. He usually proceeds with the traditional Latin formula (assuming the new Pope was a cardinal):
"Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum:"
"Habemus Papam!"
"Eminentissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum,"
"Dominum [forename],"
"Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalem [surname],"
"qui sibi nomen imposuit [papal name]."

"("I announce to you a great joy:"
"We have a Pope!"
"The Most Eminent and Most Reverend Lord,"
"Lord [forename],"
"Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church [surname],"
"who takes to himself the name [papal name].")"
During the announcement for Pope Benedict XVI's election, the cardinal protodeacon Jorge Arturo Medina Estévez greeted the crowds first in several different languages "Dear brothers and sisters" before proceeding to the Latin announcement. This was not done when Pope Francis was elected.

It has happened in the past that the Cardinal Protodeacon has himself been the person elected pope. In such an event, the announcement is made by the next senior Deacon, who has thus succeeded as Protodeacon. The last time the cardinal protodeacon was elected was in 1513 when Giovanni de Medici was elected as Pope Leo X and the next senior cardinal deacon Alessandro Farnese (the future Pope Paul III) made the announcement. During the election of Pope Leo XIII in 1878 Protodeacon Prospero Caterini appeared and started to make the announcement but was physically incapable of completing it, so another made it for him.

Following the announcement, the senior Cardinal Deacon retreats, and papal aides unfurl a large, maroon banner that out of practicality often bears the late pope's arms in the centre, draping it onto the railing of the Basilica's loggia. During Pope Francis' announcement, there was no image of his predecessor's arms (indicating that the previous pope was still alive), and during Pope Pius XI's first appearance following his election at the 1922 conclave, the banner showed the arms of Pope Pius IX instead of the arms of his immediate predecessor Pope Benedict XV. The new pope then emerges onto the balcony to the adulation of the crowd, while a brass band in the forecourt below plays the Pontifical Anthem. He then imparts the Urbi et Orbi blessing. The Pope may on this occasion choose to give the shorter episcopal blessing as his first Apostolic Blessing instead of the traditional Urbi et Orbi blessing, this happened most recently with Pope Paul VI after his election at the 1963 conclave Beginning with Pope John Paul II, the last three popes elected including Pope Francis, have chosen to address the crowds first before imparting the Urbi et Orbi blessing. Also, at Pope Francis' first appearance, he led the faithful first in prayers for his predecessor and asked them for prayers for himself before imparting the Urbi et Orbi blessing.

Formerly, the pope would later be crowned by the "triregnum" or Triple Tiara at the Papal Coronation. All popes since John Paul I have refused an elaborate coronation, choosing instead to have a simpler papal inauguration ceremony.

The process was further refined by Gregory XV with his 1621 bull "Aeterni Patris Filius", which established the requirement of a two-thirds majority of cardinal electors to elect a pope. The Third Lateran Council had initially set the requirement that two-thirds of the cardinals were needed to elect a pope in 1179. This requirement had varied since then, depending on whether the winning candidate was allowed to vote for himself, in which cases the required majority was two-thirds plus one vote. "Aeterni Patris Filius" prohibited this practice and established two-thirds as the standard needed for election. "Aeterni Patris Filius" did not eliminate the possibility of election by acclamation, but did require that a secret ballot take place first before a pope could be elected.

Papal conclave

A papal conclave is a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Bishop of Rome, also known as the Pope. The pope is considered by Roman Catholics to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and earthly head of the Roman Catholic Church.

Concerns around political interference led to reforms after the interregnum of 1268–1271 and Pope Gregory X's decree during the Second Council of Lyons in 1274 that the cardinal electors should be locked in seclusion "cum clave" (Latin for "with a key") and not permitted to leave until a new Bishop of Rome had been elected. Conclaves are now held in the Sistine Chapel of the Apostolic Palace.

Since the Apostolic Age, the Bishop of Rome, like other bishops, was chosen by the consensus of the clergy and laity of the diocese. The body of electors was more precisely defined when, in 1059, the College of Cardinals was designated the sole body of electors. Since then, other details of the process have developed. In 1970, Pope Paul VI limited the electors to cardinals under 80 years of age in "Ingravescentem aetatem". The procedures were established by Pope John Paul II in his apostolic constitution "Universi Dominici gregis" as amended by Pope Benedict XVI in 2007 and 2013. A two-thirds supermajority vote is required to elect the new pope.

The procedures relating to the election of the pope have undergone almost two millennia of development. Procedures similar to the present system were introduced in 1274 whenGregory X promulgated "Ubi periculum" following the action of the magistrates of Viterbo during the interregnum of 1268–1271.

Pope Urban VI in 1378 became the last pope elected from outside the College of Cardinals. The last person elected as pope who was not already an ordained priest or deacon was the cardinal-deacon Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, elected as Pope Leo X in 1513. His successor, Pope Adrian VI, was the last to be elected (1522) "in absentia". Archbishop Giovanni Montini of Milan received several votes in the 1958 conclave though not yet a cardinal. As the Catholic Church holds that women cannot be validly ordained, women are not eligible for the papacy. Though the pope is the Bishop of Rome, he need not be of Italian background., the three most recent conclaves have elected a Pole (1978), a German (2005), and an Argentinian (2013).

Electors formerly made choices by accessus, acclamation ("per inspirationem"), adoration, compromise ("per compromissum") or scrutiny ("per scrutinium"). The last election by compromise is considered to be that of Pope John XXII in 1316, and the last election by acclamation that of Pope Innocent XI in the 1676 conclave. "Universi Dominici gregis" formally abolished the long unused methods of acclamation and compromise in 1996, making scrutiny now the only approved method for the election of a new pope.

In the 9th century, the Holy Roman Empire came to exert control over papal elections. While Charlemagne (Emperor from 800 to 814) and Louis the Pious (Emperor from 813 to 840) did not interfere with the Church, Lothair I (Emperor from 817 to 855) claimed that an election could only take place in the presence of imperial ambassadors. In 898 riots forced Pope John IX to recognise the superintendence of the Holy Roman Emperor. At the same time, the Roman nobility also continued to exert great influence, especially during the tenth-century period known as "saeculum obscurum" (Latin for "the dark age").

In 1059 the same papal bull that restricted suffrage to the cardinals also recognised the authority of the Holy Roman Emperor (at the time Henry IV), but only as a concession made by the pope, declaring that the Holy Roman Emperor had no authority to intervene in elections except where permitted to do so by papal agreements. Pope Gregory VII (in office 1073-1085) was the last Pope to submit to the interference of the Holy Roman Emperors. The breach between him and the Holy Roman Empire caused by the Investiture Controversy led to the abolition of the Emperor's role. In 1122 the Holy Roman Empire acceded to the Concordat of Worms, accepting the papal decision.

To resolve prolonged deadlocks in papal elections in the earlier years, local authorities often resorted to the forced seclusion of the cardinal electors, such as first in the city of Rome in 1241, and possibly before that in Perugia in 1216. In 1269, when the forced seclusion of the cardinals alone failed to produce a pope, the city of Viterbo refused to send in any materials except bread and water. When even this failed to produce a result, the townspeople removed the roof of the Palazzo dei Papi in their attempt to speed up the election.

In an attempt to avoid future lengthy elections, Gregory X introduced stringent rules with the 1274 promulgation of "Ubi periculum". Cardinals were to be secluded in a closed area and not accorded individual rooms. No cardinal was allowed, unless ill, to be attended by more than two servants. Food was supplied through a window to avoid outside contact. After three days of the conclave, the cardinals were to receive only one dish a day; after another five days, they were to receive just bread and water. During the conclave, no cardinal was to receive any ecclesiastical revenue.

Adrian V abolished Gregory X's strict regulations in 1276, but Celestine V, elected in 1294 following a two-year vacancy, restored them. In 1562 Pius IV issued a papal bull that introduced regulations relating to the enclosure of the conclave and other procedures. Gregory XV issued two bulls that covered the most minute of details relating to the election; the first, in 1621, concerned electoral processes, while the other, in 1622, fixed the ceremonies to be observed. In December 1904 Pope Pius X issued an apostolic constitution consolidating almost all the previous rules, making some changes, "Vacante sede apostolica". John Paul II instituted several reforms in 1996.

In 1996, John Paul II promulgated a new Apostolic Constitution, called "Universi Dominici gregis", which with a slight modification by Pope Benedict XVI now governs the election of the pope, abolishing all previous constitutions on the matter, but preserving many procedures that date to much earlier times.

Under "Universi Dominici gregis", the cardinals are to be lodged in a purpose-built edifice, the "Domus Sanctae Marthae", but are to continue to vote in the Sistine Chapel.

Several duties are performed by the Dean of the College of Cardinals, who is always a Cardinal Bishop. If the Dean is not entitled to participate in the conclave owing to age, his place is taken by the Sub-Dean, who is also always a Cardinal Bishop. If the Sub-Dean also cannot participate, the senior Cardinal Bishop participating performs the functions.

Since the College of Cardinals is a small body, there have been proposals that the electorate should be expanded. Proposed reforms include a plan to replace the College of Cardinals as the electoral body with the Synod of Bishops, which includes many more members. Under present procedure, however, the Synod may only meet when called by the pope. "Universi Dominici gregis" explicitly provides that even if a synod or an ecumenical council is in session at the time of a pope's death, it may not perform the election. Upon the pope's death, either body's proceedings are suspended, to be resumed only upon the order of the new pope.

It is considered poor form to campaign for the position of pope. However, there is inevitably always much speculation about which cardinals have serious prospects of being elected. Speculation tends to mount when a pope is ill or aged and shortlists of potential candidates appear in the media. A cardinal who is considered to be a prospect for the papacy is described informally as a "papabile" (an adjective used substantively: the plural form is "papabili"), a term coined by Italian-speaking Vatican watchers in the mid-twentieth century, literally meaning "pope-able".

The death of the pope is verified by the Cardinal Camerlengo, or Chamberlain, who traditionally performed the task by calling out his Christian (not papal) name three times in the presence of the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations, and of the Cleric Prelates, Secretary and Chancellor of the Apostolic Camera. The Cardinal Camerlengo takes possession of the Ring of the Fisherman worn by the pope; the ring, along with the papal seal, is later destroyed before the College of Cardinals. The tradition originated to avoid forgery of documents, but today merely is a symbol of the end of the pope's reign.

The Congregations must make certain arrangements in respect of the pope's burial, which by tradition takes place within four to six days of the pope's death, leaving time for pilgrims to see the dead pontiff, and is to be followed by a nine-day period of mourning (this is known as the "novemdiales," Latin for "nine days"). The Congregations also fix the date and time of the commencement of the conclave. The conclave normally takes place fifteen days after the death of the pope, but the Congregations may extend the period to a maximum of twenty days in order to permit other cardinals to arrive in the Vatican City.

A vacancy in the papal office may also result from a papal resignation. Until the resignation of Benedict XVI on 28 February 2013, no pope had abdicated since Gregory XII in 1415. In 1996 Pope John Paul II, in his Apostolic Constitution "Universi Dominici gregis", anticipated the possibility of resignation when he specified that the procedures he set out in that document should be observed "even if the vacancy of the Apostolic See should occur as a result of the resignation of the Supreme Pontiff".

In the case of a papal resignation, the Ring of the Fisherman is placed in the custody of the Cardinal Camerlengo; in the presence of the College of Cardinals, the Cardinal Camerlengo marks an X with a small silver hammer and chisel into the Ring, disfiguring it so it may no longer be used for signing and sealing official papal documents.

In his book, "Light Of The World: The Pope, The Church and The Signs Of The Times", Benedict XVI espoused the idea of abdication on health grounds, which already had some theological respectability.

The cardinals hear two sermons before the election: one before actually entering the conclave, and one once they are settled in the Sistine Chapel. In both cases, the sermons are meant to lay out the current state of the Church, and to suggest the qualities necessary for a pope to possess in that specific time. The first preacher in the 2005 conclave was Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, the preacher of the papal household and a member of the Capuchin Franciscan order, who spoke at one of the meetings of the cardinals held before the actual day when the conclave began. Cardinal Tomáš Špidlík, a former professor at the Pontifical Oriental Institute and a non-voting member (due to age) of the College of Cardinals, spoke just before the doors were finally closed for the conclave.

After all the cardinals present have taken the oath, the Master of the Papal Liturgical Celebrations orders all individuals other than the cardinal electors and conclave participants to leave the Chapel. Traditionally, he stands at the door of the Sistine Chapel and calls out: ""Extra omnes!"" (Latin for, roughly, "Everybody else, get out!") He then closes the door. In modern practice, the Master of the Papal Liturgical Celebrations does not have to stand at the door of the Sistine Chapel—during the 2013 conclave, the Master Guido Marini stood in front of the altar and gave the command through a microphone and only went to the chapel doors to close them after the outsiders had left.

The Master himself may remain, as may one ecclesiastic designated by the Congregations prior to the commencement of the election. The ecclesiastic makes a speech concerning the problems facing the Church and on the qualities the new pope needs to have. After the speech concludes, the ecclesiastic leaves. Following the recitation of prayers, the Cardinal Dean asks if any doubts relating to procedure remain. After the clarification of the doubts, the election may commence. Cardinals who arrive after the conclave has begun are admitted nevertheless. A sick cardinal may leave the conclave and later be readmitted; a cardinal who leaves for any reason other than illness may not return to the conclave.

Although in the past cardinal electors could be accompanied by attendants ("conclavists"), now only a nurse may accompany a cardinal who for reasons of ill-health, as confirmed by the Congregation of Cardinals, needs such assistance. The Secretary of the College of Cardinals, the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations, two Masters of Ceremonies, two officers of the Papal Sacristy and an ecclesiastic assisting the Dean of the College of Cardinals are also admitted to the conclave. Priests are available to hear confessions in different languages; two doctors are also admitted. Finally, a strictly limited number of servant staff are permitted for housekeeping and the preparing and serving of meals.

Secrecy is maintained during the conclave; the cardinals as well as the conclavists and staff are forbidden to disclose any information relating to the election. Cardinal electors may not correspond or converse with anyone outside the conclave, by post, radio, telephone, internet and social media, or otherwise and eavesdropping is an offense punishable by excommunication "latae sententiae". Only three cardinals electors are permitted to communicate with the outside world under grave circumstances, prior to approval of the College, to fulfil their duties: the Major Penitentiary, the Cardinal Vicar for the Diocese of Rome, and the Vicar General for the Vatican City State.

Before the conclave that elected Pope Francis, the Sistine Chapel was "swept" using the latest electronic devices to detect any hidden "bugs" or surveillance devices (there were no reports that any were found, but in previous conclaves press reporters who had disguised themselves as conclave servants were discovered). "Universi Dominici gregis" specifically prohibits media such as newspapers, the radio, and television. Wi-Fi access is blocked in Vatican City and wireless signal jammers are deployed at the Sistine Chapel to prevent any form of electronic communications to or from the Cardinal electors.

The process of voting comprises three phases: the "pre-scrutiny", the "scrutiny", and the "post-scrutiny."

Once all votes have been cast, the first Scrutineer chosen shakes the container, and the last Scrutineer removes and counts the ballots. If the number of ballots does not correspond to the number of cardinal electors present (including sick cardinals in their rooms), the ballots are burnt, unread, and the vote is repeated. If, however, no irregularities are observed, the ballots may be opened and the votes counted. Each ballot is unfolded by the first Scrutineer; all three Scrutineers separately write down the name indicated on the ballot. The last of the Scrutineers reads the name aloud.

Once all of the ballots have been opened, the final post-scrutiny phase begins.

The Scrutineers add up all of the votes, and the Revisers check the ballots and the names on the Scrutineers' lists to ensure that no error was made. The ballots are then all burned by the Scrutineers with the assistance of the Secretary of the College and the Masters of Ceremonies. If the first scrutiny held in any given morning or afternoon does not result in an election, the cardinals proceed to the next scrutiny immediately. The papers from both scrutinies are then burned together at the end of the second scrutiny.

The color of the smoke indicates the results to the people assembled in St Peter's Square. Dark smoke (fumata nera) indicates that the ballot did not result in an election, while white smoke (fumata bianca) announces that a new pope was chosen. Originally, in the event a pope was not elected, damp straw was added to the fire to create dark smoke. In the event a new pope was elected, the ballots were burned alone, creating white smoke.

Since 1963, chemicals have been added to the burning process, and beginning in 2005, bells ring after a successful election to augment the white smoke.

During the 2013 conclave, the Vatican disclosed the chemicals used to color the smoke:

Once the election concludes, the Cardinal Dean summons the Secretary of the College of Cardinals and the Master of Papal Liturgical Celebrations into the hall. The Cardinal Dean then asks the pope-elect if he assents to the election, saying in Latin: ""Acceptasne electionem de te canonice factam in Summum Pontificem?" (Do you accept your canonical election as Supreme Pontiff?)" There is no requirement that the pope-elect do so and he is free to respond ""Non accepto"" (I do not accept).

In practice, any cardinal who intends not to accept will explicitly state this "before" he receives a sufficient number of votes to become pope, as Giovanni Colombo did in October 1978.

In the past, when the cardinals were voting during the conclave, they sat on canopied thrones symbolizing the cardinals' collective governance of the church during the period of "sede vacante". Upon the acceptance by the new pope of his election, all other cardinals in attendance would each pull a cord and lower the canopies above their respective thrones signifying an end to the period of collective governance and only the newly elected pope's canopy remained unlowered. The last time canopied thrones were used was during the 1963 conclave. Beginning with the 1978 August conclave canopied thrones were no longer used due to the lack of space resulting from the large increase in the number of cardinal electors.

Then, the new pope goes to the "Room of Tears", a small red room next to the Sistine Chapel; the room has the nickname because of the strong emotions experienced by the new pope. The new pope dresses by himself, choosing a set of pontifical choir robes—consisting of a white cassock, rochet, and red mozzetta—from three sizes provided. He then wears a gold corded pectoral cross, a red and gold embroidered stole, and then dons the white papal zucchetto on his head. In 2013, Pope Francis dispensed with the red mozzetta, rochet, and gold pectoral cross, wearing only the white cassock and his own pectoral cross when he appeared on the central balcony. He also did not emerge wearing the stole, vesting in it only to impart the Apostolic Blessing and removing it shortly after.

Next, the Cardinal Protodeacon (the senior Cardinal Deacon) appears at the loggia of the Basilica to proclaim the new pope. He usually proceeds with the traditional Latin formula (assuming the new Pope was a cardinal):
"Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum:"
"Habemus Papam!"
"Eminentissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum,"
"Dominum [forename],"
"Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalem [surname],"
"qui sibi nomen imposuit [papal name]."

"("I announce to you a great joy:"
"We have a Pope!"
"The Most Eminent and Most Reverend Lord,"
"Lord [forename],"
"Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church [surname],"
"who takes to himself the name [papal name].")"
During the announcement for Pope Benedict XVI's election, the cardinal protodeacon Jorge Arturo Medina Estévez greeted the crowds first in several different languages "Dear brothers and sisters" before proceeding to the Latin announcement. This was not done when Pope Francis was elected.

It has happened in the past that the Cardinal Protodeacon has himself been the person elected pope. In such an event, the announcement is made by the next senior Deacon, who has thus succeeded as Protodeacon. The last time the cardinal protodeacon was elected was in 1513 when Giovanni de Medici was elected as Pope Leo X and the next senior cardinal deacon Alessandro Farnese (the future Pope Paul III) made the announcement. During the election of Pope Leo XIII in 1878 Protodeacon Prospero Caterini appeared and started to make the announcement but was physically incapable of completing it, so another made it for him.

Formerly, the pope would later be crowned by the "triregnum" or Triple Tiara at the Papal Coronation. All popes since John Paul I have refused an elaborate coronation, choosing instead to have a simpler papal inauguration ceremony.