Still in conclave in chapel Sixtine, the 133 cardinal are in deep reflection t cast the right vote for who amongst the will be the 167th pontiff to head the catholic church of this era
This Wednesday, May 7th 2025, the 133 cardinals started their conclave for the election of the Successor of Pope Francis who died on 21st of April at age 88. The first vote’s result was announced through a black smoke that flew from the chimney at the Sixtine Chapel of the St Peter’s basilica showing that no cardinal has received the 89 votes needed to accede to St Peter’s thorn.
The up to 12 00 catholic christians that waited in front of the St Peter’s Basilica for 7 hours will still have to exercise some patience before they can see the 267 Pope to head the destiny of the catholic charge in the next coming years. For the first result of the vote of this 76th conclave, the cardinals cast their votes by secret ballot before the counting. Since no name received two-thirds of the cardinals’ votes, or 89 votes, the ballots were burned in the cast-iron stove. To increase the smoke’s visibility, a second, more modern stove has been in use since 2005, equipped with a type of smoke generator. This black smoke is caused by several components, including potassium perchlorate, anthracite, and sulfur, for a total duration of approximately 7 minutes. However, the Vatican News explains that, As soon as a name receives more than two-thirds of the College of Cardinals’ support, the long-awaited white smoke will rise. Another sign is that the bells of the basilica did not ring, as is usually the case during the election of a new Pontiff. The result of this first vote is not a surprise, since 1878, ever since the conclave was established in the Sixtine Chapel, the first smoke of the conclave has always been black.
