{"id":136644,"date":"2025-05-08T10:19:01","date_gmt":"2025-05-08T10:19:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/papal-conclave-2025-live-updates-vatican-awaits-white-smoke-on-day-2-of-pope-francis-succession-process-nbc-news\/"},"modified":"2025-05-08T10:19:01","modified_gmt":"2025-05-08T10:19:01","slug":"papal-conclave-2025-live-updates-vatican-awaits-white-smoke-on-day-2-of-pope-francis-succession-process-nbc-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/papal-conclave-2025-live-updates-vatican-awaits-white-smoke-on-day-2-of-pope-francis-succession-process-nbc-news\/","title":{"rendered":"Papal conclave 2025 live updates: Vatican awaits white smoke on day 2 of Pope Francis succession process – NBC News"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Astha Rajvanshi<\/span><\/span><\/span>
With second round of voting this morning now complete, the cardinals will soon break for lunch, leaving the Sistine Chapel to return to their lodgings at Casa Santa Marta.
Then they will return to the chapel for another two rounds of voting later this afternoon, scheduled to begin around 4 p.m. local time (10 a.m. ET).
Alexander Smith<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Reporting from Vatican City
For a few seconds it\u00a0wasn\u2019t entirely clear what color the smoke was. When it billowed into the blue cloud-dappled sky, it certainly looked a little gray.
\u201cFor a moment, I thought \u2014\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0white,\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0white!\u201d said Miguel Alfonso, 35, a priest from Honduras.
Before long the result was unequivocal, however.
\u201cAh, negra!\u201d his friend, David Barrios, 41, a priest from Valencia, Spain, shouted.
Shortly before that, confusion and excitement abounded as the smoke turned white for just a second before it went out. It’s safe to assume this was just the chemical element of the stove being turned off.
Astha Rajvanshi<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Plumes of black smoke were seen billowing from the Sistine Chapel chimney, signaling that the 133 cardinal-electors have not yet reached a decision to elect a new pope.
The cardinals must come to a two-thirds majority to reach a decision. It’s the second black smoke signal of the conclave after three rounds of voting.
Peter Guo<\/span><\/span><\/span>
The average age of cardinal voters are years and three months. But the conclave\u2019s youngest member is only 45.
Born in Ukraine in 1980, Mykola Bychok<\/a> is a Melbourne-based bishop. Bychok became the most senior Catholic official in Australia when he as \u201celevated to\u00a0the dignity of\u00a0Cardinal\u201d last year by late Pope Francis.
He is the first\u00a0Australia-based cardinal since George Pell, who died in 2023. Bychok spent most of his priesthood in Ukraine and served as a vicar in New Jersey from 2015 to 2020.
Bychok has been based in Melbourne since\u00a0January 2020 and will be eligible to apply for Australian citizenship this year, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation<\/a>. He was enthroned in 2021 as\u00a0the third bishop of\u00a0the Melbourne Eparchy.
Astha Rajvanshi<\/span><\/span><\/span>
There has so far been no smoke from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney, which means that the cardinal-electors have not yet reached a conclusion on who should be the next pope.
It could also mean that the first morning vote has gone over time. If we don’t see smoke soon, we may next expect it at around noon local time (6:00 a.m. ET). As a reminder: there are four chances for white smoke on a regular conclave day \u2014 after each of the four votes \u2014 but only two chances for black smoke after each pair of votes.
Last night, crowds waited much longer than expected for a smoke after after Wednesday\u2019s first ballot.
There was speculation around why it took so long: it could be that the meditation ahead of the vote ran much longer than anticipated, or that the voting was delayed because of a procedural mistake. It may also have something to do with the fact that there are more cardinals than ever before, most of whom are new to conclaves, and therefore took more time than estimated to vote.
Alexander Smith<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Reporting from Vatican City
In the throng outside the Apostolic Palace you will find conversations about religion, politics, local gastronomy \u2014 and soccer.
The Borggiano family are from Buenos Aires, near the neighborhood where the late Pope Francis grew up. They flew here to see the conclave \u2014 but right now they are debating which Argentinian legend is better: Lionel Messi or Maradona.
\u201cYou\u2019re British?\u201d Ricardo Borggiano, 62, correctly says of this NBC News reporter. \u201cWhat do you think about Maradona?\u201d he asks cheekily, gesturing with his outstretched arm in a reference to the \u201chand of god\u201d goal that saw Argentina eliminate England from the 1986 World Cup.
After NBC News attempted to get the conversation back to the matter in hand, his son, Frederico, 33, who now lives in Madrid and met the rest of the family here, said, \u201cWe\u2019ve just had an Argentinian pope, so I don\u2019t think we\u2019ll get another one. I just hope we see white smoke today.\u201d
Katie Primm<\/span><\/span><\/span>
All eyes are on the Sistine Chapel chimney to see if the cardinals have elected a new pope, signified by whether it will billow a white smoke and the church bells ring.
With two morning votes and two afternoon votes on each full day of the conclave, the temporary chimney installed last week by the Vatican\u2019s fire department will emit black smoke if the vote is inconclusive.
It may seem as old as the papacy itself, but the frescoed chapel\u2019s cast-iron stove was first used in 1939 to burn ballots and personal notes. Since 2005, the use of that stove triggers an electronic, smoke-producing device outfitted on a second, more modern one. Both stoves are about 3.2 feet high and have two openings \u2014 one for lighting them and one for ballots.
According to the Vatican press office, the black smoke is made by a cartridge holding a mixture of potassium perchlorate, anthracene and sulphur. The white smoke is created by a mixture of potassium chlorate, lactose and a pine resin also known as Greek pitch. The smoke travels up almost 100 feet of steel and copper tubes to the chimney and the world beyond.
Alexander Smith<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Reporting from Vatican City
For the avid smokewatcher, preparation is key.
In this sense, it\u2019s clearly not Joaquin Lopez\u2019s first rodeo. The Spanish telecoms engineer is used to lengthy religious gatherings, having waited for six hours at Semana Santa \u2014 Spain\u2019s Holy Week \u2014 last month.
Down at the very front of St. Peter\u2019s Square, he proudly shows off\u00a0his\u00a0top conclave hack: a folding, telescopic stool. These are common in his native Spain because of municipal laws banning portable backed chairs at such events.
\u201cWe knew we would have to wait a long time and so this is perfect,\u201d said Lopez, 55, from Andalusia, proudly shrinking down his seat to little larger than a dinner plate. \u201cWe were here for five hours yesterday but it was fine because we were able to sit down, eat some paninis and drink water. We had some beers but we weren\u2019t allowed to bring them in, so we had to drink them at the security scanners outside.\u201d
Alexander Smith<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Reporting from Vatican City
There are already thousands of people in St. Peter\u2019s Square eagerly awaiting the results from the second round of voting. If the cardinals have elected a new pope, white smoke should soon appear from the Sistine Chapel chimney around 10:30 a.m. local time (4:30 a.m. ET).
The weather is a weird mix of warm sun that keeps hiding behind a big gray cloud sprinkling the cobbles with intermittent drizzle. Groups of firefighters, police and civil guard have ducked into a cafe just off the square to stock up on coffee and\u00a0cream-filled\u00a0maritozzi\u00a0buns.
\u201cIt\u2019s been very, very busy,\u201d says one of the a baristas clearing away small plates from the counter, apologizing that they don\u2019t have time to give their name.\u00a0\u201cIt looks like today will be the same.\u201d
Astha Rajvanshi<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Katie Primm<\/span><\/span><\/span>
The cardinals are casting their ballots using an elaborate, highly scrutinized system which begins with the ballot cards themselves. Said to have been designed by the late Pope Paul VI, who died in 1978, the ballot cards on which each cardinal will write in the name of his preferred candidate are rectangular in shape so that they can be folded in half and read, \u201cEligo in summum pontificem…\u201d or, \u201cI elect as supreme pontiff…\u201d.
Each cardinal will receive multiple ballots from the masters of ceremonies. After writing his preferred name, he will fold his ballot card over twice. Cardinals may only write the name of one candidate; more than one name would deem their ballot invalid.
Henry Austin<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Dust off the history books and there are papal conclaves with international intrigue, royal rigging and even riots, a checkered past that belies the air of sanctity and solemnity surrounding modern papal elections.
\u201cThe great joy of the conclave is that nobody really knows and it\u2019s such a unique electorate,\u201d James Somerville-Meikle, the former deputy director of the Catholic Union of Great Britain, told NBC News before Francis\u2019 death. \u201cSo many conclaves in the past have thrown up surprises.\u201d
The College of Cardinals, he said, has always been faced with two questions: \u201cDo we try something new? Do we go for continuity?\u201d
Take a look at NBC News’ analysis of Cardinals Zuppi, Parolin, Tagle, Erd\u0151, and the other men tipped to be the next leader of 1.4 billion Catholics around the world.
Read the full story here.<\/em><\/strong><\/a>
NBC News<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Astha Rajvanshi<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Today will see the cardinals assemble for a second day of voting to elect the new pope. They can vote up to four times a day, with two rounds taking place in the morning and two in the afternoon. Meanwhile, crowds continue to gather in St. Peter’s Square and wait for a white smoke signal from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney, which will indicate that the 267th pope has been chosen.
The times below are estimates based on Vatican guidance and the past two conclaves, and can vary throughout the day.
There tends not to be smoke for each of the four votes. Black smoke, for example, will only follow a pair of inconclusive votes. Meanwhile, if a new pope is chosen, white smoke will immediately follow the conclusive vote regardless of whether it’s the first of a pair or the second.
Astha Rajvanshi<\/span><\/span><\/span>
If Vatican guidance is correct, by now the cardinals will have returned to the Sistine Chapel to cast their first votes to elect a new pope. It’s the first of up to four rounds of voting expected to happen throughout the day.
NBC News<\/span><\/span><\/span>
The doors of the Sistine Chapel were sealed Wednesday as the papal conclave got underway. After three hours and fifteen minutes, black smoke billowed from the chimney above the chapel, signaling the cardinals had not yet selected a new pope. NBC News\u2019 Lester Holt reports from the Vatican.
Alexander Smith<\/span><\/span><\/span>
Reporting from Vatican City
When the black smoke finally came after more than three hours last night, for some the mood had sailed way past excitement through anticipation, and it was hovering dangerously close to distraction.
It was soles rather than souls that needed prayer, and standing with limited supplies of food and water became too much for a few of the observers. At one point, a golf cart drove through the throng and collected someone in need of medical attention. Others appeared to leave the square altogether. People kept busy by cheering the occasional seagull that landed next to the chimney or by clapping, perhaps in the hope that those hermetically sealed inside the Sistine Chapel might hear their encouragement.
The long-awaited moment diced with anticlimax. Past 9 p.m. local time, it was too dark to see the chimney against the sky, so most people had their eyes and phones trained on the big screens showing the action. But seconds before the smoke finally arrived, the screens cut out, meaning it was difficult to actually see the moment itself.
For the faithful gathered here, of course, the sideshow drama was not the point.
\u201cI was asking my soul, \u2018What\u2019s with the long wait?\u2019\u201d said the Rev. Mac Bean, 27, a priest from Zimbabwe who was wearing a white flat cap and white collar tucked into his blue short-sleeve shirt. \u201cBut it\u2019s normal not to get a decision on the first try.\u201d
Meryl Adriano, 41, a teacher from Melbourne, Australia, said: \u201cI don\u2019t mind waiting, because we\u2019re on holiday for two weeks. What\u2019s a few hours when we\u2019ve waited 12 years to see this? There are so many other people waiting, too, they are giving us energy.\u201d
Astha Rajvanshi<\/span><\/span><\/span>
The 133 cardinal electors will shortly return to the Sistine Chapel to commence the second day of the conclave after black smoke billowed from the chimney atop the Sistine Chapel last night.
Smoke of that color indicates that no new pope was elected during yesterday\u2019s first round of voting.
According to the Vatican’s schedule, today could see the cardinals casting ballots four times.
After having breakfast, the cardinals have headed to a Mass service before returning to voting, with two ballots cast in the morning starting at 9:15 a.m. local time (3:15 a.m. ET) and two in the afternoon starting at 5:30 p.m. local time (11:30 a.m. ET).
© 2025 NBCUniversal Media, LLC<\/p>\n

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