Robert Prevost elected as first American pope and takes the name Leo XIV
By Lauren Kent, Chris Lamb and Rob Picheta, CNN
Updated 1:33 PM EDT, Thu May 8, 2025
CNN
—
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of the United States has been elected the 267th pope and has stepped onto the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica as the new leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.He’s now known as Pope Leo XIV.
Prevost, 69, from Chicago, Illinois, is the first ever pope from the United States.
Cardinals took two days to select a new pontiff, matching the timeline from the previous two gatherings and suggesting that Prevost quickly impressed his peers during the secretive process.
Francis and Benedict XVI were both revealed in the evening of the conclave’s second day, while John Paul II, the longest-reigning pope of modern times, was selected on the third day in 1978.
An exceptional leader’
A leader with global experience, he spent much of his career as a missionary in South America and most recently led a powerful Vatican office for bishop appointments. He is expected to build on Pope Francis’ reforms.He worked for a decade in Trujillo, Peru, and was later appointed bishop of Chiclayo, another Peruvian city, where he served from 2014 to 2023.
Prevost is a member of the Augustinian religious order – which he also led for more than a decade as their prior general, which has given him leadership experience of leading an order spread across the world.
Considered a highly capable and accomplished leader, Prevost most recently led the powerful Vatican office for new bishop appointments, the Dicastery for Bishops, assessing candidates and making recommendations to the late pope. He also served as the president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
While it is often said cardinal electors would always shy away from choosing a pope from the US, due to America’s outsized global political influence, Prevost’s long experience in Peru may have mitigated those fears among the electors.
“He’s somebody that, even though he’s from the West, would be very attentive to the needs of a global church,” said Elise Allen, CNN’s Vatican analyst. “You’re talking about somebody who spent over half of his ecclesial career abroad as a missionary in Peru.”
Allen added that he is seen as an apt leader in Vatican circles because “he’s able to accomplish things without necessarily being authoritarian about the way he did things.”
“Prevost is somebody who is seen as an exceptional leader. From very young, he was appointed to leadership roles,” Allen said. “He’s seen as somebody who is calm and balanced, who is even-handed, and who is very clear on what he thinks needs to be done… but he’s not overly forceful in trying to make that happen.”
Prevost earned his bachelor’s in mathematics from Villanova University in Pennsylvania and went on receive his diploma in theology from the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago.
He was later sent to Rome to study canon law at the Pontifical Saint Thomas Aquinas University and was ordained as a priest in June 1982. Later in his career, he taught canon law in the seminary in Trujillo, Peru.
Prevost speaks English, Spanish, Italian, French, and Portuguese, and can read Latin and German.
His degree in college was in Mathematics
Chicago Sun-Times (@Suntimes) posted at 8:15 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
Today’s front page. https://t.co/0JL9vCHAX3
(https://x.com/Suntimes/status/1920830062670020960?t=5qWryLbhujprOt_ggEPg5Q&s=03)
From The College of Cardinals about the new Pope.
Barack Obama
@BarackObama
Michelle and I send our congratulations to a fellow Chicagoan, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV. This is a historic day for the United States, and we will pray for him as he begins the sacred work of leading the Catholic Church and setting an example for so many, regardless of faith.
1:47 PM · May 8, 2025
Art Candee 🍿🥤
@ArtCandee
The first American Pope, Pope Leo XIV, is Robert Prevost from Chicago, and he gets emotional on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican.He is 69 years old and is viewed as a centrist, but is progressive on some key social issues.
Like Pope Francis who championed migrants and the poor, Prevost has long embraced marginalized groups.
https://x.com/ArtCandee/status/1920530855547531459
Fly Sistah 🪷
@Fly_Sistah
Pope Leo XIV, first American pontiff, has African roots. According to the Census, Prevost’s mother Midred Martinez was the mixed-race daughter of Black property owners, the Haitian-born Joseph Martinez & New Orleans native Louise Baquié, a Creole. It is unclear how he identifies.
https://x.com/Fly_Sistah/status/1920604517856366822
Terry Lee Watkins Jr. 王瑞民💜💙 (@TerryWatkinsJr1) posted at 9:30 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
I’m an American living in China.
They literally think Trump is a spy for them. They love him more than Biden because he’s sabatoging us at every point.
Biden stopped them from doing stuff. Trump just opens doors for them. They know he’s weak and an idiot. They’re laughing.
(https://x.com/TerryWatkinsJr1/status/1920848801541079244?t=6SefNMcYP3TjcgMs1_NkUQ&s=03)
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick (@ReichlinMelnick) posted at 7:23 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
NEW: @NBCNews confirmed last night that the Trump admin almost sent a dozen men from Vietnam, the Philippines, Laos, and Mexico to Libya, a country described as a “hellscape” for migrants where many have been SOLD INTO SLAVERY and subjected to extraordinary horrors. https://t.co/Cn7mU1zCfz
(https://x.com/ReichlinMelnick/status/1920817013439471762?t=sSpRW4gFcouu3h1aYjWb8A&s=03)
Terry Lee Watkins Jr. 王瑞民💜💙 (@TerryWatkinsJr1) posted at 9:26 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
Once I saw the Popes brothers…I’m like…yeah…that definitely ain’t 100% Europe. https://t.co/cMAza1aRlk
(https://x.com/TerryWatkinsJr1/status/1920847907491561702?t=O9PN1pxLBLCQ0gssvIUOqQ&s=03)
Eugene (@BreakingNews4X) posted at 0:38 PM on Thu, May 08, 2025:
A Vatican insider said: “He was not one of the obvious candidates, but he knows everybody, he spent 30 years as a missionary, he has languages.
“His time in Peru means he is one of the least ‘American’ of the American cardinals. But he understands America and he can speak to the country, which is important in the Trump era.”
(https://x.com/BreakingNews4X/status/1920533659909820865?t=QPmQAyGg9I8f0zIQRnq8vA&s=03)
Chris D. Jackson
@ChrisDJackson
🚨 WOW: Back in 2014,
@DrBiden
gave the commencement address at Villanova. And guess who was sitting right behind her?
Robert Prevost—who is now Pope Leo.
History has a funny way of foreshadowing greatness. Pretty incredible.
https://x.com/ChrisDJackson/status/1920817255253778581
Wendell Pierce (@WendellPierce) posted at 10:53 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
The American Catholic Church that sold 272 slaves to save Georgetown University, whose descendants are in the Creole community of New Orleans and Louisiana, now has a Pope who is a descendant of that very same Creole community! Divine restitution, reconciliation,& penance ?
(https://x.com/WendellPierce/status/1920869861548290547?t=z7kZQKiLd8jnkEEZrhX9JA&s=03)
Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) posted at 10:04 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
This is super important: @AlannaVagianos interviewed a history professor about how authoritarian regimes use pro-natalism to trap women in the home.
Really, don’t miss this one:
https://t.co/7Vu4fEkXDz
(https://x.com/JessicaValenti/status/1920857455514263599?s=03)
Washington — A federal judge on Friday ordered Rumeysa Ozturk, a Tufts doctoral candidate, to be immediately released from immigration custody on bail as she pursues a challenge to her detention by immigration authorities after the Trump administration revoked her student visa.
U.S. District Judge William Sessions, who is presiding over the case, said at the conclusion of Friday’s bail hearing that Ozturk raised “very substantial” and “very significant” claims that her First Amendment and due process rights were violated when she was taken into custody following the revocation of her student visa in March.
“Her continued detention cannot stand,” he said.
MAGA Cult Slayer🦅🇺🇸 (@MAGACult2) posted at 7:50 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
Oh, you thought the border was just about keeping people out?
Nah—now they’re stopping folks from leaving.
U.S. agents are running outbound checkpoints at Peace Arch and Pacific Highway. That’s right—they’re clocking who’s heading to Canada.
Not smugglers. You. Your mom. Your uterus.
They say it’s about “export laws,” but if you’ve read Project 2025, you already know—this is about control.
When a regime starts guarding the exits?
You’re not free. You’re contained.
This isn’t fearmongering. This is your f***ing wake-up call.
Watch the exits. Stay loud. And don’t
Your https://t.co/V92N1NRTnp
(https://x.com/MAGACult2/status/1920823603257286870?t=qpYNP8y8HUJSBt-QLk0veA&s=03)
Angry Staffer (@Angry_Staffer) posted at 9:20 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
There should be bipartisan concern about the reports that DOGE is merging HHS, Social Security, and IRS data into one database.
That is the trifecta of personal information, and any competent person (or machine) could essentially put together a complete profile of your life.
(https://x.com/Angry_Staffer/status/1920846330693320967?t=Z40Eh3eeUPFpqDmBPeAy5w&s=03)
Angry Staffer (@Angry_Staffer) posted at 9:20 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
There should be bipartisan concern about the reports that DOGE is merging HHS, Social Security, and IRS data into one database.
That is the trifecta of personal information, and any competent person (or machine) could essentially put together a complete profile of your life.
This is the kind of data that intelligence agencies drool over, and they’re putting it all in one place.
There’s obvious potential for abuse domestically by both parties, but this also severely raises the risk of a foreign compromise — that database will be an instant target.
(https://x.com/Angry_Staffer/status/1920846330693320967?t=hwhotwEqPO-EmK1DmRfiWA&s=03)
David J. Bier (@David_J_Bier) posted at 9:23 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
🚨Your US government has kidnapped this child. Not family separation. Kidnapping. It took a 2-year-old child from her parents, deported the mom to Venezuela, and have imprisoned the dad in a Salvadoran torture prison without charge or trial. Every day, new evil level reached https://t.co/xFmuIxUo1z
(https://x.com/David_J_Bier/status/1920847191377158631?t=a9szDPUCytGqnBShvak52Q&s=03)
LOL
The United States versus Elon R. Musk (@Needle_of_Arya) posted at 9:37 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
Creole as heck, and letting folks assume Southern Italian heritage. We see you, Leo… 🇮🇹👀
(https://x.com/Needle_of_Arya/status/1920850617012035850?t=g2jYPW5pGJCwe6rTPv-O1A&s=03)
Acyn (@Acyn) posted at 5:27 PM on Thu, May 08, 2025:
Baier: She never finished her residency and doesn’t currently have an active medical license.
RFK JR: She was top of her medical class at Stanford. During her residency, she won every award that she can win. She walked away from traditional medicine because she was not curing patients .
https://t.co/Sa19P2MgnI
(https://x.com/Acyn/status/1920606388566511941?t=4U7j98eyW6G-GQzffThZ0g&s=03)
Theory of the Dog (@TheoryoftheDog) posted at 5:36 PM on Thu, May 08, 2025:
Casey Means is unfit to serve as U.S. Surgeon General. She holds an M.D. from Stanford but never completed residency, is not board-certified, and, as of January 2024, lacks an active medical license. She is not a practicing physician and has not treated patients in years, having left an otolaryngology residency early. Since then, she has promoted pseudoscientific wellness products, monetized lifestyle advice, and embraced the discredited “functional medicine” movement. No modern Surgeon General has lacked both board certification and a valid medical license or stopped practicing medicine in their early 30s to focus on social media and corporate wellness branding. Means lacks experience in managing healthcare institutions, leading federal programs, or coordinating emergency responses and has not published peer-reviewed research in public health or clinical medicine. Her only qualification is her M.D., despite no longer meeting legal requirements to practice medicine. She is not a scientist, not a practicing doctor, and unqualified to oversee national public health. The Surgeon General represents medical science; Means represents herself. Her nomination should be withdrawn.
(https://x.com/TheoryoftheDog/status/1920608686566678624?t=TuV_sUVm82rJL6j0M68Dxg&s=03)
Tiff4Mahogany_44 🇺🇸 🇺🇦 NATO MEMBER (@tiff4mahogany) posted at 10:42 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
A white man told me, a black woman, straight up he was voting for Trump because he didn’t want a black woman president.
It wasn’t at a klan rally either.
This man wouldn’t consider this racism or sexism, but it is. https://t.co/jXdDAcg5zw
(https://x.com/tiff4mahogany/status/1920867035304632450?t=i417Q0JKhf4XTz4CdTngqQ&s=03)
RIP
WGN Morning News (@WGNMorningNews) posted at 8:27 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
Retired Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter, the ascetic bachelor and New Hampshire Republican who became a darling of liberals during his nearly 20 years on the bench, has died. He was 85.
Read the full story: https://t.co/6PiZy0qPKL https://t.co/gE8TRDN0aT
(https://x.com/WGNMorningNews/status/1920832915656618301?t=EW6Yeil6wX99RQNjdVMttQ&s=03)
Magdi Jacobs (@magi_jay) posted at 8:31 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
In the summer of 2024, those of us who *did* like Harris & had been following her for a while, were very aware of what we saw as the unfairness in how people treated her. We had no reason to believe that people would suddenly become *more fair* if she became the candidate.
(https://x.com/magi_jay/status/1920833884255650221?t=xe3GOWz4UKPHhtjewcYjoA&s=03)
Magdi Jacobs (@magi_jay) posted at 8:29 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
Everyone who was not an original Harris supporter was ~shocked~ by the strength of her campaign & her persona. Blinded by hindsight, they now memory-hole the fact that they, themselves, created an environment in which Biden would be *much more* hesitant to step down for Harris.
(https://x.com/magi_jay/status/1920833402531369022?t=ltoSOaj08CEcEPJ8W1jFFA&s=03)
Alex Cole (@acnewsitics) posted at 1:35 PM on Thu, May 08, 2025:
MAGA is finding out the new pope is
Pro-refugee
Anti-gun violence
Preaches climate action
Pro-poor, not pro-profit
Against nationalist hate
Big on helping migrants
All the things Jesus teaches
And they are LIVID!!! 🤣
(https://x.com/acnewsitics/status/1920548089242472943?t=wdMy8J9p4BntTtLroOBIzg&s=03)
Christopher Webb (@cwebbonline) posted at 8:41 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
You guys see what Trump’s doing, right?
YESTERDAY: “You better go out and buy stocks now! This country will be like a rocket ship!”
TODAY: Tariffs on China should be cut to 80%.
Market manipulation… https://t.co/3jgRWrKSW3
(https://x.com/cwebbonline/status/1920836447721886142?t=rL231rgQhwdJ4k13gj4dzA&s=03)
LongTime🤓FirstTime👨💻 (@LongTimeHistory) posted at 6:33 PM on Thu, May 08, 2025:
Chaos erupts in Massachusetts neighborhood as ICE drags away mom—clinging to her baby.
The crowd asked ICE to show an ID or warrant for the arrest—agents replied, “We don’t have to show you anything.”
Local police then arrested the teen daughter of woman ICE had just detained for being “hostile.”
Ashley Spring, a Worcester resident and candidate for the Worcester School Committee, was also arrested by local police.
It was unclear what happened to the baby after the arrest—last seen on Eureka Street in Worcester, Massachusetts.
#DemVoice1 #wtpBLUE #DemsUnited
https://t.co/94DOsJ7cqQ
(https://x.com/LongTimeHistory/status/1920623143481446838?t=lpcqwnKXFDgTm0baszcyIQ&s=03)
Yashar Ali 🐘 (@yashar) posted at 9:49 PM on Thu, May 08, 2025:
President Trump has fired the Librarian of Congress, Dr. Carla Hayden.
The position of Librarian of Congress is so apolitical that only 14 people have held the role since 1802.
Hayden, who was the first woman and Black American to serve as Librarian of Congress, has held the position since 2016.
Her predecessor served in the role for 28 years before retiring.
https://t.co/KbYuB9mFfR
(https://x.com/yashar/status/1920672391308452239?t=diWIeWKNs75AeLgnJuSazw&s=03)
Norman Ornstein (@NormOrnstein) posted at 8:14 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
Children dying of starvation and AIDS in Africa. Air safety imperiled. Community health centers eliminated, Head Start eviscerated. And tens or hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars for a North Korea style military parade. Welcome to Trumpland.
(https://x.com/NormOrnstein/status/1920829715985703198?t=lD_93tITNodlFPUFezJl-A&s=03)
OUTRAGEOUS
Jackie Singh 🇺🇸 (@HackingButLegal) posted at 0:52 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
A transgender military member mourns his lost years and the retirement he busted his ass for—now stolen from him by the Trump administration.
Make sure your parents know *this* is who they hate: Those who have honorably served. https://t.co/8VJl28hR4z
(https://x.com/HackingButLegal/status/1920718619714965645?t=xjbczlcgkBZ6t–MyrfzEw&s=03)
The United States versus Elon R. Musk (@Needle_of_Arya) posted at 5:44 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
the short tweet is that the white far left openly want David Hogg to do to Democrats exactly what they’ve accused “the DNC” of doing to Bernie twice, which is to rig the game against certain “unlikeable” candidates
(https://x.com/Needle_of_Arya/status/1920791878523326712?t=v1oZd7PQm32c9tyOvrMvkQ&s=03)
Minding My Black Business (@lacadri34) posted at 6:35 AM on Fri, May 09, 2025:
I’m so sick of these non-voting doom and gloom folks saying it doesn’t matter who the president is. There are degrees to everything. Life can always get way worse so it absolutely does matter who the president is.
(https://x.com/lacadri34/status/1920804920858439814?t=JghUYD2lvUpJ89s0fYPXEQ&s=03)
Suzie rizzio (@Suzierizzo1) posted at 8:52 PM on Thu, May 08, 2025:
A Judge blocks a deportation flight of Asian migrants to Libya! WTF first of all why are we trying to deport them with no due process and to a Country they’ve never been too before. So when do we start calling these deportations ethnic cleansing and not deportations! 😡😡😡 https://t.co/CCO5Vokxhz
(https://x.com/Suzierizzo1/status/1920658046771982453?t=kDzChX0AbQ_afw5Zsg_URw&s=03)
Congressman Troy A. Carter
@RepTroyCarter
As a Black man, a proud son of New Orleans, and the U.S. Congressman representing the very 7th Ward neighborhood where our new Pope’s family hails from, I am bursting with pride today.
This is history! The first American Pope, with Creole and Haitian roots, rising from the streets of New Orleans to the Vatican. As a Xavier University alum, I know how deeply faith and resilience run in our community.
We celebrate this moment — with joy, with prayers, and with pride!
—TAC
4:03 PM · May 8, 2025
·
39.5K
https://x.com/RepTroyCarter/status/1920585449195626682
Good Morning Everyone 😊😊😊