The Next Conclave Explained: Time-Honoured Traditions, Modern Questions

Salt + Light Media

Friday, May 2, 2025

Fresco of Jesus and the Apostles in a Medieval-looking city. Jesus is handing the Keys of the Kingdom to a kneeling St. Peter.

Perugino, "The Delivery of the Keys." Wikimedia Commons.

Have you ever wondered about the rules of a Conclave? Why can only cardinals vote? And what does the word “Conclave” mean in the first place? We’ve put together a friendly Q and A to shed some light on the process for electing the next Pope. We also have a timeline of the Interregnum and Conclave up at slmedia.org/blog/conclave-timeline.

Why can only cardinals vote in a Conclave, and why do they have to be under 80?

All cardinals in good standing under 80 years old are eligible and required to vote. If they aren't able to come to Rome, they have to explain their reason and get permission from the rest of the College to stay home (Universi Dominici Gregis #38). Even then, there are provisions for one cardinal-elector to go obtain votes from cardinals who were able to come to Rome but can't leave the Casa Santa Marta due to sickness or injury (#67).

The 80-year age limit is similar to the mandatory retirement age for bishops at 75. St. John Paul II explained that it comes from a “desire not to add to the weight of such venerable age the further burden of responsibility for choosing the one who will have to lead Christ's flock in ways adapted to the needs of the times” (preamble).

The age limit means that neither Dean of the College Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re nor Sub-dean Cardinal Leandro Sandri are allowed to participate in the voting sessions themselves, although they can certainly take part in the General Congregations and other preparations. Also, Cardinal Re movingly presided over and gave the homily at Pope Francis’ funeral, and will preside over the Mass Pro Eligendo Romano Pontifice ("Mass for the Election of the Roman Pontiff"). Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Pope Francis’ Secretary of State, will preside over the voting sessions of the Conclave.

The reason that only cardinals can vote is a bit more obscure. It goes back to ancient traditions in which the Bishop of Rome was elected by a representative synod of the principal clergy and laity of the city. Those electoral synods could be messy, even highly political. Emperors, kings, and other civil leaders exerted considerable influence on the election in order to secure the candidate most beneficial to their interests. By the middle ages, the papacy had become perhaps the greatest power in European politics, so the election of a ruler’s preferred candidate turned the papacy into quite the political prize.

To protect the sacred nature of the office, reforms were made over time. In 1059, Pope Nicholas II decreed that only cardinals could elect the pope—originally, just the cardinal-bishops. In 1179, Pope Alexander III expanded the vote to all cardinals and required a two-thirds majority. That rule still applies today.

Through all these reforms, a Conclave is still a type of representative synod. The word "cardinal" comes from the Latin cardo, meaning a hinge of a door or cupboard, as in, the Diocese of Rome "turns" through these clergy, as well as with the input of the bishops of the surrounding dioceses. It's why every cardinal throughout the world, along with his ministry as a diocesan bishop, dicastery prefect, or other position, is either an honourary "cardinal deacon" or "cardinal priest" of a parish in Rome, or a "cardinal bishop" of a nearby diocese. For example, Cardinal Gérald Lacroix is Archbishop of Quebec, as well as the Cardinal Priest of San Giuseppe, a parish in Rome’s Aurelio neighbourhood. The parish community itself is led by a pastor and assisting clergy incardinated in the Diocese of Rome. All this means that the College of Cardinals continues to be, nominally at least, the principal clergy of the city! Since the Papacy is a global ministry, it’s important that the cardinal-electors are as representative of the global Church as possible. For this Conclave, the electors come from 71 countries around the world, representing every continent and region.

For more information on the College of cardinals, including brief biographies of each member of the College, check out this page from the Vatican website.

Can only cardinals under 80 be elected Pope?

Any non-married Catholic man aged 35 and over can be elected pope! The only requirement is that they are eligible to be consecrated as a bishop. Of course, the election of a fellow cardinal-elector is such a strong convention that it hasn’t been broken in almost 650 years. The last non-cardinal to be elected was Archbishop Bartolomeo Prignano of Bari in 1378, who became Pope Urban VI. The last non-bishop to be elected was papal diplomat and Camaldolese priest Cardinal Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari. (In his day, clergy in the Curia and diplomatic corps weren’t always ordained bishops even if they were elevated to the Cardinalate.) He was ordained a bishop and became Pope Gregory XVI in 1831.

Why is it called a “Conclave”?

The word comes from the Latin, cum clave, meaning “with a key.” It refers to the fact that the cardinals are literally locked in the Sistine Chapel to vote.

At first it was a way to encourage the electors to come to a quicker decision, as if to say, "you can't come out until you've picked someone!" Pope Gregory X created that rule in 1274: the cardinals had taken a long and chaotic three years to elect him in 1271, and he wanted to make sure that never happened again! Also, locking the doors helped to limit – but not fully exclude – that influence of civil rulers mentioned above.

850 years later, the rule is more conceptual than literal, although the door is indeed locked during voting sessions, and “it is specifically prohibited to the cardinal electors, for the entire duration of the election, to receive newspapers or periodicals of any sort, to listen to the radio, or to watch television” (#57). In 2025, this also includes smartphones and internet access. The Sistine Chapel and surrounding areas are even equipped with signal jammers and devices that block radio waves.

Cum clave is also symbolic of the secrecy that the cardinal-electors and others are required, by oath, to take during and after the Conclave, and to the freedom of the Church to discern God's will, apart from personal gain and secular political interests.

We've recently published a few articles reflecting on the way the cardinals prayerfully navigate different perspectives and even voting blocs. Give them a read here and here. For now, let's address a follow-up question:

Why all the secrecy?

We love a good political drama, even if the actual voting process of a Conclave is quite repetitive. Alas, all cardinals and assisting staff (like cooks, cleaners, and medical personnel) are required to refrain from sharing details about vote totals, discussions, debates, or anything else during the Conclave. In 2013, Pope Benedict XVI introduced the penalty of automatic excommunication for anyone violating this norm of confidentiality.

It’s true that journalists are often able to reconstruct events by hazarding guesses based on cardinals' public expressions of their views, general information supplied by the Holy See Press Office like the topics of the General Congregations, and with the help of a few anonymous sources. However, once the Conclave is done and the new pope is presented to the Church, the College is committed to presenting a united show of support to the new pope. More importantly, they are committed to heeding St. Paul’s admonition to “[make\ every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3). Comments and descriptions of divisions in the Conclave might undermine that unity and support.

How can I stay up-to-date on all the news and events of the Interregnum and Conclave?

Go to slmedia.org/papacy for all of our coverage from Rome, including the Novendiali Masses in memory of Pope Francis, preparations for the Conclave, and the Inauguration Mass for the new pope. Also check out the latest episode of our special “Hope Between Popes” series right now!