Pope Francis was selected on March 13, 2012, after 115 voting cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church reached a conclusion.
New Pope Selected at the Vatican
![Newly elected Pope Francis, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, appears on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, March 13, 2013.](https://gdb.voanews.com/C1040A7E-337A-43DA-B10F-12221D08D93F_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Newly elected Pope Francis, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina, appears on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, March 13, 2013.
![April 4, 2005: Jorge Mario Bergoglio conducts a mass in honor of Pope John Paul II at the Buenos Aires cathedral. Bergoglio of Argentina was elected pope on March 13, 2013 to lead the Roman Catholic Church.](https://gdb.voanews.com/D193AA4B-A631-41DE-A6C2-6A0A98892683_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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April 4, 2005: Jorge Mario Bergoglio conducts a mass in honor of Pope John Paul II at the Buenos Aires cathedral. Bergoglio of Argentina was elected pope on March 13, 2013 to lead the Roman Catholic Church.
![Crowds cheer as white smoke rises from the chimney above the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, March 13, 2013.](https://gdb.voanews.com/95D213CF-5B07-4241-B915-A0114504D438_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Crowds cheer as white smoke rises from the chimney above the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican, March 13, 2013.
![White smoke rising from the chimney on the Sistine Chapel, indicating that a new pope has been elected.](https://gdb.voanews.com/09D2E8C4-E4FE-4492-93BB-5C876137852A_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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White smoke rising from the chimney on the Sistine Chapel, indicating that a new pope has been elected.