Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected the new pope of the Catholic Church on Thursday afternoon.

Prevost will take the name Pope Leo XIV.

Prevost, 69, was born in Chicago and served as Bishop of Chiclayo in Peru for eight years until 2023.

He appeared visibly emotional as he appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica and waved to the crowd in St. Peter’s Square.

Habemus Papam! We have a Pope!

The Cardinals gathered in the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel have elected Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost as the 267th Pope, who took the name Pope Leo XIV. pic.twitter.com/7COawsKvWu

— Vatican News (@VaticanNews) May 8, 2025

The election of the new pope comes less than three weeks after Pope Francis passed away, the day after Easter, after he was hospitalized with pneumonia.