The papal conclave of 2025 was convened to elect a pope, the leader of the Catholic Church, to succeed Francis following his death on 21 April 2025. In accordance with the apostolic constitution Universi Dominici gregis, which governed the vacancy of the Holy See, only cardinals who had not passed their 80th birthdays on the day on which the Holy See became vacant (in this case, those who were born on or after 21 April 1945) were eligible to participate in the conclave. Although not a formal requirement, the cardinal electors have almost always elected the pope from among their number. The election was carried out by secret ballot (Latin: per scrutinium).
Of the 252 members of the College of Cardinals at the time of Francis's death, 135 cardinal electors were eligible to participate in the subsequent conclave. Two cardinal electors did not attend, decreasing the number of participants to 133. The required two-thirds supermajority needed to elect a pope was 89 votes.
