Cardinals will meet on May 7 to start voting for a new pope, the Vatican announced on Monday, April 28th, following the death of Pope Francis.
So-called “Princes of the Church” under the age of 80 will meet in the Sistine Chapel to choose a new religious leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics.
The date was decided at a meeting of cardinals of all ages early on Monday.
The Church’s 252 cardinals were called back to Rome after the pope’s death, although only 135 are eligible to vote in the conclave.


