Black smoke rose from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday evening, signalling that the first vote of the papal conclave had ended without selecting a new pope to lead the Roman Catholic Church.
Thousands of faithful waited in anticipation in St Peter’s Square, with eyes fixed on the narrow pipe at the top of the chapel. The signal came more than three hours after the conclave began, longer than the first vote in the 2013 conclave that chose Pope Francis.
A white puff will mark the moment a new pope is elected, but that was not expected on the first day. In modern times, no pontiff has been selected in the initial round.
The conclave, rich in ritual and tradition, began earlier Wednesday as 133 cardinal electors under the age of 80 entered the Sistine Chapel in solemn procession.
The cardinals will stay overnight in Vatican accommodations, where informal discussions may continue. Formal voting resumes on Thursday with two ballots in the morning and two in the afternoon, repeating daily until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority, which is at least 89 votes this time.
Though the conclave is sealed from the outside world, the colour of the smoke from the chapel’s chimney remains the sole clue to the proceedings.
Papal conclaves in recent decades have been brief. Francis was elected after just two days in 2013, and Benedict XVI after the same period in 2005.
Leading contenders include Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle.
If they fail to gain traction, attention may shift to other potential candidates, such as France’s Jean-Marc Aveline, Hungary’s Peter Erdo, American Robert Prevost, or Italy’s Pierbattista Pizzaballa.
Some cardinals have expressed hopes for a decision by Thursday or Friday to project unity following Pope Francis’s 12-year papacy, which ended with his death last month.
In a sermon preceding the conclave, Italian Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, 91, urged his fellow prelates to put aside personal agendas and prioritise the good of the Church and humanity. He emphasised the importance of unity through diversity, not uniformity.
