When a pope dies or resigns, the governance of the Catholic Church passes to the College of Cardinals.
The Cardinals are bishops and Archbishops appointed by the pope to assist in religious issues and these serve for life, but, become ineligible to participate in a papal conclave at the age of 80.
The Pope is considered by the Catholics as the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church and is elected from among the second highest rank of the Catholic Church known is the Cardinal.
The cardinals hold meetings at the Vatican to discuss and prepare for the upcoming papal election, called a conclave.
Until 1379, any Roman Catholic male was elected pope, however, every pope has been selected from the College of Cardinals.
As of 1 March, there are 252 cardinals, of whom 137 are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope.
The election of the Pope by the college of cardinals is done by secret ballot, voting one by one up to the Last Judgment, in the process the Cardinals keep saying a prayer and dropping the twice-folded ballot in a large chalice.
The voting is done in Four rounds of balloting daily until a candidate receives two-thirds of the vote. The results of each ballot are counted aloud and recorded by three cardinals designated as recorders.
If none of the cardinals receives the necessary two-thirds of the vote, the ballots are burned in a stove near the chapel.
When a cardinal receives the necessary two-thirds vote, the dean of the College of Cardinals asks him if he accepts his election. If he accepts, he chooses a papal name and is dressed in papal vestments before processing out to the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica.
After a successful vote among the members of the College of Cardinals, Saint Peter’s Square at the Vatican lets out the white smoke from burned ballots to signify that the Pope was elected. It is the final act that seals the intricate papal selection process.
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