After two days of contemplation and balloting, a new Pope has been elected. White smoke emanating from the Sistine Chapel chimney today to inform the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics and everyone else that the conclave of 133 cardinals have determined a new Bishop of Rome.

Those who knew Pope Leo XIV as a younger man say his path to the papacy has prepared him well for the challenges ahead.

In a tradition that scholars date to the 19th century, smoke released from a chimney will be colored white if the cardinals have made a decision, or black if they remain deadlocked.