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World Europe • 4 min read
By Christopher Lamb, Antonia Mortensen and Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN
4 minute read
Updated 10:45 AM EDT, Mon April 28, 2025
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Cardinals participate in a general congregation meeting at the Vatican on Monday.
Rome CNN —
Cardinals have chosen May 7 as the date to start conclave and elect a new leader for 1.4 billion Catholics around the world, the Vatican announced.
The date for the papal election was decided on Monday after cardinals held the first daily congregation since Pope Francis’ funeral. General congregations are closed-door meetings which have been held frequently since Francis’ death to discuss church matters and preparations for conclave.
Only cardinals under the age of 80 are allowed to vote in a papal election. There are currently 135 cardinals eligible to participate in the upcoming election. However, at least one cardinal has revealed he will not be in attendance.
Cardinal Antonio Cañizares Llovera, who previously served as Archbishop of Valencia between 2014 to 2022, has said he is unable to travel to the Vatican for health reasons.
It not yet clear exactly how many cardinals will be present when conclave gets underway on May 7. Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said Monday that so far more than 180 cardinals have arrived in Rome and took part in the meeting in the morning, of which just over 100 were cardinal electors.
Bruni said the cardinals discussed questions relating to the future of the church and the challenges it faces in the world today.
He added that Cardinal Reinhard Marx, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle and Cardinal Dominique Mamberti had been elected to help Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Dublin-born cleric who became a naturalized American citizen who holds the position of “camerlengo” (or chamberlain). Farrell is tasked with “overseeing and administering the temporal goods and rights of the Apostolic See” following the death or resignation of a pope.
The congregations will continue daily, starting at 9 a.m. (3 a.m. ET) except for on May 1 and May 4.
On Monday afternoon, Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu — who had previously claimed he could participate in conclave even though he is listed by the Vatican as a “non-elector” — withdrew his request to join the upcoming conclave, according to a report from Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.
Becciu, once one of the most powerful figures in the Vatican, was ordered by Pope Francis in 2020 to resign the “rights and privileges” of a cardinal after he became embroiled in a Vatican financial scandal. The cardinal, who has always maintained his innocence, told a Sardinian newspaper last week that “there was no explicit will to exclude me from the conclave nor a request for my explicit renunciation in writing.” Vatican spokeman Bruni said earlier on Monday that no decision had been made on Becciu’s status.
A nun prays in front of Pope Francis’ tomb on the first day of its opening to the public at Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica in Rome on Sunday, April 27.
People wave and take pictures with their phones as the coffin of Pope Francis passes by in Rome after his funeral on Saturday, April 26.
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the 91-year-old dean of the College of Cardinals, presides over the funeral Mass on Saturday. He called Francis "a pope among the people" in his homily.
Mourners receive communion during the funeral on Saturday.
Mourners light candles next to an image of Pope Francis outside the Buenos Aires Cathedral in Argentina on Saturday.
The Book of the Gospels lies on the pope's coffin during his funeral.
A Catholic man watches a live telecast of the pope's funeral from Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Re blesses the pope's coffin during the funeral.
This aerial image shows mourners holding candles in Dili, East Timor, on Saturday. Last year, an estimated crowd of 600,000 gathered for the pope’s Mass in the country.
US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive at the funeral on Saturday.
Nuns gather in Vatican City ahead of Saturday's funeral service.
A woman reacts as she watches the pope's funeral in Bangkok, Thailand.
The pope's coffin is carried into St. Peter's Square for the start of his funeral.
St Peter's Basilica is illuminated by the morning sun ahead of the pope's funeral on Saturday.
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, US President Donald Trump meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the pope's funeral.
A person peeks through a curtain during the funeral.
People rest on a street near the Vatican ahead of the funeral.
The body of Pope Francis lies in a coffin before it was sealed inside St. Peter's Basilica on Friday, April 25.
Crowds line up outside St. Peter's Basilica on Friday as a sign indicates the closing of St. Peter's Square.
The pope's casket is sealed Friday, formally ending his lying in state.
A woman looks back as she reaches the columns of St. Peter's Basilica on Friday.
Faithful pay their respects to the pope in St. Peter's Basilica on Friday.
Giovanni Douglas-Lopes of Brazil, left, and Teresa Araya of Eretrea both reside in Rome and waited in line for hours Friday to see Pope Francis lying in state. Douglas-Lopes said it is a privilege to be here and witness this week: "I was here at the last conclave when he was chosen to be the pope, and now I am here at the time of his death." Upon reflection, Araya said: "I miss the pope. He was the pope for the poor and the children of the world."
People pay their respects as the body of Pope Francis lies in state inside St. Peter's Basilica on Thursday, April 24. Francis was lying in state at the Basilica for three days.
A tour group prays in front of St. Peter's Basilica on Thursday.
Nuns take selfies as they make their way to the line to view the pope on Thursday.
Faithful pay their respects on Thursday.
Priest Alain Mousques speaks during a Mass in memory of Pope Francis at the Chiesa di Santo Spirito in Sassia on Thursday.
People line up at the Vatican on Thursday to enter St. Peter's Basilica.
A Mass is held at the Church of Santa Lucia in Rome on Thursday.
Father Ronald Ignacio, based in Rome, poses with Sister Mary Martha from Orange County, California, at the Vatican on Thursday. Ignacio, who has photos of himself with Pope Francis and cardinals Luis Tagle and Pablo David, is overjoyed to have two Filipino cardinals in the running to be the next pope.
The coffin carrying Pope Francis lies inside St. Peter's Basilica on Wednesday, April 23.
A nun cries as the body of Pope Francis is carried into St. Peter's Basilica.
People hold up their mobile devices as they view the the pope's body in St. Peter's Basilica.
People in Johannesburg pray during a memorial Mass at the Cathedral of Christ the King.
A couple takes a selfie after viewing the pope's body on Wednesday.
Nuns stand together in St. Peter's Square after paying their respects to the pope.
People wait to pay their respects as the pope's body lies in state in St. Peter's Basilica.
People line up in St. Peter's Square on Wednesday.
The pope's coffin is carried into St. Peter's Basilica.
Two girls rest in St. Peter's Square as their family waits in line to view the pope's body.
This satellite image shows long lines at St. Peter's Square as members of the public wait to enter St. Peter's Basilica.
A memorial for Pope Francis is seen at the Esplanade of Tasitolu in Dili, East Timor on Tuesday, April 22.
Italian President Sergio Mattarella pays his respects to Pope Francis on Tuesday. Francis was lying in state at the Casa Santa Marta residence, where he lived during his papacy.
People pray for the pope during a Mass at the Assumption Cathedral in Bangkok.
People walk around St. Peter's Square on Tuesday.
A man reads news about the pope at his home in Nairobi, Kenya.
Nuns walk to Vatican City on Tuesday.
A tribute is left for the pope at St. Peter's Square.
People attend a Mass in honor of Pope Francis at the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Dili, East Timor.
A nun prays inside the Church of Santa Maria in Traspontina, which is near the Vatican.
People gather Tuesday in St. Peter's Square.
A parishioner of the Greek Catholic Church is seen before a Pope Francis memorial service in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Monday, April 21.
People light candles at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on Monday, hours after the pope's death was announced.
Nuns attend a rosary prayer for the pope in St. Peter's Square.
People in Istanbul stand by a photograph of Pope Francis at the Church of St. Anthony of Padua.
People gather for the rosary prayer at St. Peter's Square on Monday.
People embrace as they attend a Mass in Buenos Aires, Argentina, the birthplace of Pope Francis.
The pope is honored by a Mass at the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City.
Graffiti artist Alexander Ikawah paints Pope Francis on a canvas in Nairobi.
People pray during a service in Buenos Aires.
Workers hang black drapes over the front of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC.
Church members get ready for a Mass at a cathedral in Caracas, Venezuela.
A portrait of Pope Francis is held at the Basílica de San José de Flores in Buenos Aires, where he worshipped in his youth.
Worshippers mourn by the Stone of Anointing at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
People in London attend a solemn requiem at the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Most Precious Blood, informally known as Westminster Cathedral.
A woman holds an image of Pope Francis after a Mass at the Basilica de Guadalupe in Mexico City.
Cyclists observe a moment of silence for the pope before the 45th Tour of the Alps in San Lorenzo Dorsino, Italy.
A worshipper, photographed through the door of a confessional, prays during Mass in Brasilia, Brazil.
Oscar Lucchini, who is in charge of the chapel of San Lorenzo de Almagro, Pope Francis' hometown soccer team, shows a picture of the pope holding the team's shirt.
Archbishop Heiner Koch leads a Mass at St. Hedwig's Cathedral in Berlin.
People mourn the pope at a church in Quezon City, Philippines.
A person holds a rosary with a cross during Mass at the Sacred Heart Church in Bentong, Malaysia.
The Pauline Chapel is seen during a service at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.
A parishioner weeps in front of a picture of Pope Francis at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York.
People attend a church service in Berlin's St. Hedwig's Cathedral.
People react as they attend a Mass at the St. John Lateran Basilica in Rome.
A person lights a candle at the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral in England.
The bell tolls at St. Peter's Square following the pope's death.
In pictures: The world mourns Pope Francis
The cardinal electors will vote for the next Bishop of Rome in a highly secretive ballot held in the Sistine Chapel, which was closed to the public on Monday in preparation for the balloting, according to the Vatican Museum website.
The last two conclaves — held in 2005 to elect Pope Benedict XVI and in 2013 to elect Pope Francis — lasted two days.
Before conclave begins on May 7, the cardinal electors will participate in a Eucharistic celebration known as the Mass Pro Eligendo Papa, before they proceed to the 16th-century chapel. There they will take an oath of secrecy before the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations proclaims “extra omnes,” (meaning “Those who are extra, leave”). The moment will be the last time the cardinals are seen until the new pope is elected, which requires a two-thirds majority from the electors present.
Four out of five of the cardinals who will soon select the next pontiff owe their positions to Pope Francis. Of the 135 members of the College of Cardinals under the age of 80 who are eligible to appoint the next pontiff, Pope Francis installed 108. That means 80% of the votes cast in the upcoming conclave will be cast by cardinals elevated by Francis.
The conclave will be “one of the most diverse that we’ve had in the history of the church,” Susan Timoney, a professor at the Catholic University of America in Washington DC, previously told CNN.
During his 12-year papacy, Francis appointed more than 20 cardinals from nations that had never previously had a cardinal, nearly all from developing countries, including Mongolia, Laos, Papua New Guinea and Mali.
Pope Francis, 88, died of a stroke and heart failure on Easter Monday. He was laid to rest on Saturday at the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in a simple tomb as requested by the late pontiff, following a funeral Mass on the steps of the St. Peter’s Basilica that drew heads of state, royalty and hundreds of thousands of mourners.
On Sunday afternoon, some of the cardinals visited the simple, marble tomb with the inscription “Franciscus” to pay homage to the late pontiff. Huge crowds filed past his final resting place in the basilica.
This story has been updated with developments.
CNN’s Sharon Braithwaite and Christian Edwards contributed reporting.
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