Following the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday, the Vatican has begun formal preparations for the conclave to elect his successor. Out of the 252 cardinals in the Catholic Church, only 135 are under the age of 80 and eligible to vote for the next Pope—and 18 of them are Africans.
Europe leads with the highest number of eligible cardinal electors (53), followed by Asia (23), Africa (18), South America (17), North America (16), and Oceania and Central America with four each.
Notable African electors include:
Fridolin Besungu (DR Congo)
Peter Okpaleke (Nigeria)
Robert Sarah (Guinea)
John Njue (Kenya)
Antoine Kambanda (Rwanda)
Ignace Dogbo and Jean-Pierre Kutwa (Ivory Coast)
Stephen Brislin (South Africa)
Protase Rugambwa (Tanzania)
Berhaneyesus Souraphiel (Ethiopia)
Peter Turkson (Ghana)
Desire Tsarahazana (Madagascar)
Others are from Cape Verde, Algeria, Morocco, Central African Republic, Burkina Faso, and South Sudan.
Of the 135 voting cardinals, 108 were appointed by Pope Francis, 22 by Pope Benedict XVI, and five by Pope John Paul II.
What to Expect from the Conclave
The College of Cardinals held its first general congregation on Tuesday morning, led by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Camerlengo of the Roman Catholic Church. Discussions have begun on funeral preparations and will soon shift to pre-conclave meetings.
The cardinals will decide the start date for the conclave in the coming days. During the preparatory sessions, they will also deliberate on the current needs of the Church, the state of the Curia, and the Church’s relationship with the world.
Once the conclave begins:
The cardinals will be secluded from all outside contact.
All under-80 cardinals swear an oath of secrecy regarding the election process.
Balloting takes place four times daily (two sessions).
A candidate must receive two-thirds plus one of the total votes to be elected pope.
Ballots are burned after each vote: black smoke for no result, white smoke for a successful election.
The voting ritual includes placing ballots at the Sistine Chapel’s high altar, beneath Michelangelo’s Last Judgment, with a solemn oath:
“I call as my witness Christ the Lord… that my vote is given to the one who before God I think should be elected.”
Top Contenders to Watch
Leading papal candidates include:
Peter Erdo (Hungary)
Matteo Zuppi (Italy)
Robert Sarah (Guinea)
Luis Tagle (Philippines)
Fridolin Besungu (DR Congo)
Pietro Parolin (Italy)
Other potential frontrunners hail from Sri Lanka, Jerusalem, the Netherlands, Myanmar, Sweden, and France.
The funeral for Pope Francis is scheduled for Saturday, and his body will lie in state at the Basilica starting Wednesday morning.
