First American pope Leo XIV elected

Pope Leo XIV greets the world for the first time to grant his Urbi et Orbi blessing. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected as the 267th Successor of Peter by the 133 Cardinal electors on Thursday, May 8. (Courtesy Vatican News via Facebook)</p>” data-image-description=”” data-image-meta=”{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"Pope Leo XIV greets the world for the first time to grant his Urbi et Orbi blessing. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected as the 267th Successor of Peter by the 133 Cardinal electors on Thursday, May 8. (Courtesy Vatican News via Facebook)","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"1"}” data-image-title=”050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2″ data-large-file=”https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?fit=780%2C558&ssl=1″ data-medium-file=”https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?fit=300%2C214&ssl=1″ data-orig-file=”https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?fit=1440%2C1029&ssl=1″ data-orig-size=”1440,1029″ data-permalink=”https://county17.com/2025/05/08/first-american-pope-leo-xiv-elected/050825-popeleoxiv-oo2/” decoding=”async” fetchpriority=”high” height=”557″ sizes=”(max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px” src=”https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?fit=780%2C557&ssl=1″ srcset=”https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?w=1440&ssl=1 1440w, https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?resize=300%2C214&ssl=1 300w, https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?resize=1024%2C732&ssl=1 1024w, https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?resize=768%2C549&ssl=1 768w, https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?resize=1200%2C858&ssl=1 1200w, https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?resize=780%2C557&ssl=1 780w, https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?resize=400%2C286&ssl=1 400w, https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?resize=706%2C504&ssl=1 706w, https://i0.wp.com/county17.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/050825-PopeLeoXIV-oo2.jpg?fit=780%2C557&ssl=1&w=370 370w” width=”780″>

VATICAN CITY — The Catholic Church on Thursday named Robert Prevost as the new pope, making him the first American to hold the papacy. He will be known as Pope Leo XIV.

Prevost, a 69-year-old from Chicago, has worked as a missionary in South America and previously served as a bishop in Peru. In the Vatican, he previously held the post responsible overseeing the office that selects and manages bishops the world over.

There were 133 cardinals voting, making it the largest conclave ever.

Pope Leo XIV succeeds Pope Francis, who died April 21.

In his first address as pope, he told the gathered crowd, “Peace be with you all.”

“I should also like to thank all my cardinal brethren who have chosen me to be the successor of Peter and to walk with you as a united church,” he went on to say. “Always seeking peace and justice. Seeking to work with men and women who are faithful to Jesus Christ without fear to proclaim the gospel to be missionaries.”