Former Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of the United States was selected Thursday by the papal conclave to succeed Pope Francis and lead the Roman Catholic Church. The new pontiff, who has taken the name Leo XIV,

The 2025 papal conclave at the Vatican ended with the election of American-born Cardinal Robert Prevost as Pope Leo XIV. Here's what to know about him.

Leo XIV’s predecessor Pope Francis, birth name Jorge Maria Bergoglio, appointed 80% of the cardinals who voted to elect one of them as the next pope. Most of Bergoglio’s appointees are younger and more racially and geographically diverse than the men they replaced, and many appear to be far more progressive than he was.