While the pope’s funeral is scheduled for April 26, plans are already in motion to choose his successor
As Catholics around the world mourn the late Pope Francis ahead of his funeral on April 26, speculation has begun about a possible successor. While the process has historically often ended with an unexpected outcome, there are several possible contenders.
Behind the scenes, preparations for the next conclave—the papal election—have begun. The papal account on social media platform X, previously bearing the name of Pope Francis, has been changed to Apostolica Sedes Vacans, Latin for “the apostolic seat is empty.” When the most recent conclave convened to replace resigning Pope Benedict XVI, few predicted that Francis, then Jorge Mario Bergoglio, would be elected. An old Italian saying riffs on the historical difficulties that observers have had in predicting the new pope. “He who enters the conclave as pope, leaves it as a cardinal,” it states.
Nevertheless, there are some expected frontrunners in the race to become the leader of the 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide.
Here is a brief look at a few of the top contenders.
