Watch live: Robert Prevost elected as new pope, will take the name Leo XIV

VATICAN CITY - Robert Prevost, a missionary who spent his career ministering in Peru and took over the Vatican’s powerful office of bishops, was elected the first pope from the United States in the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church.

Prevost, a 69-year-old member of the Augustinian religious order, took the name Leo XIV.

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Here’s the latest from the conclave:

People in US gather at churches to celebrate Pope Leo XIV

6:00 p.m. ET: At Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago, about two dozen people gathered to pray as light filtered in through the stained-glass windows.

Kneeling in a pew, Laurel Legle said she isn't Catholic or even Christian but felt she had to be there after the new American pope's election was announced. She called it a "profound moment."

In Peru, Diana Celis, who attended several Masses officiated by Prevost in Chiclayo, told The Associated Press that he would often repeat that he had "come from Chicago to Chiclayo, the only difference is a few letters."

New pope is reportedly a Chicago Sox fan

5:00 p.m. ET: It was initially reported that the new pope was a Cubs fan. The team congratulated Pope Leo XIV in a post on X that had a picture of Wrigley Field's iconic marquee with the message: HEY, CHICAGO. HE'S A CUBS FAN!

But his brother, John Prevost, set the record straight in an interview with WGN-TV. The pope is a White Sox fan.

"He was never ever a Cubs fan, so I don’t know where that came from. He was always a Sox fan," John said, adding that the confusion might stem from the fact their mother’s side of the family were North Siders and Cubs fans.

President Donald Trump congratulates new pope

1: 35 p.m. ET: President Donald Trump congratulated Pope Leo XIV on Thursday on his social media platform Truth Social. 

"Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named Pope," he wrote. "It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!"

Leo XIV gives first remarks

1:30 p.m. ET: From the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica, Leo XIV recalled he was an Augustinian priest, but that he was above all a Christian above all and a bishop, "So we can all walk together."

In his first words as Pope Francis’ successor, the pope said, "Peace be with you," and emphasized a message of peace, dialogue and missionary evangelization. He wore the traditional red cape of the papacy — a cape that Francis had eschewed on his election in 2013.

He spoke in Italian and then switched to Spanish, recalling his many years spent as a missionary and then archbishop of Chiclayo, Peru.

Robert Prevost steps out as new pope

1:24 p.m. ET: Robert Prevost, a missionary who spent his career ministering in Peru and leads the Vatican’s powerful office of bishops, was elected the first American pope in the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church.

Prevost, 69, took the name Leo XIV.

Cardinal Robert Prevost elected as new pope

1:15 p.m. ET: Cardinal Robert Prevost has been elected the first American pope in history.

White smoke rises, new pope elected

12:08 p.m.ET: White smoke emerged from the Sistine Chapel chimney, meaning a new pope has been selected. The College of Cardinals is expected to name the new pope within 60 minutes of the white smoke rising. The new pope was selected during the third round of voting. 

The crowd in St. Peter’s Square erupted in cheers, priests made the sign of the cross and nuns wept as the crowd shouted "Viva il papa!" after the white smoke wafted into the late afternoon sky at 6:07 p.m. Waving flags from around the world, tens of thousands of people waited to learn who had won.

Afternoon session underway

10:50 a.m. ET: The cardinals have presumably returned from lunch and the afternoon voting session is underway. We expect up to two rounds of voting.

If a pope is elected on the first ballot, we could get white smoke at that point. If no pope is elected on the first ballot, we can expect to see white or black smoke after the second ballot later this afternoon.

What to expect after Cardinals' lunch

8:30 a.m. ET: The cardinals are currently having lunch and will return to the Sistine Chapel around 9:45 a.m. ET for the afternoon voting session. Two more votes are possible on Thursday.

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, expressed hope that a new pope would be elected within hours, according to reports in major Italian newspapers.

"I hope that when I return to Rome this evening, I’ll find the white smoke already rising," he said, speaking from the city of Pompei on Thursday.

Re is 91 years old, which makes him too old to participate in the conclave of 133 cardinals who are electing the next pope and who all have to be under 80.

However, he has been prominent and delivered a mass on Wednesday before the cardinals began their conclave. As the mass ended, he was caught on a hot mic saying to Cardinal Pietro Parolin, viewed as a favorite for the papacy: "auguri doppi" ("double best wishes").

Black smoke pours out of Sistine Chapel's chimney

5:50 a.m. ET: Black smoke again poured out of the Sistine Chapel chimney, indicating that no pope was elected on second or third ballots of the conclave to choose a new leader of the Catholic Church.

The smoke billowed out at 11:50 a.m. local time after the morning voting session to elect a successor to Pope Francis. With no one securing the necessary two-thirds majority, or 89 votes, the 133 cardinals will return to the Vatican residences where they are being sequestered. They will have lunch and then return to the Sistine Chapel for the afternoon voting session.

Two more votes are possible on Thursday.

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How many votes are needed to select a pope?

The backstory:

The voting process works similar to how the U.S. federal government: a two-thirds majority is required to choose the next pope.

Each cardinal writes his choice on a piece of paper and drops off their twice-folded ballot in a large chalice one by one, according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops website.

Cardinals must be under 80 years old to cast a vote for a new pope.

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