Cardinal Robert Prevost has become the Catholic Church’s new pope, Leo XIV. His election marks the first instance of an American pope for the church.

Prevost, 69, was considered a contender for the papacy but was largely overlooked by many bettors and experts in favor of other cardinals, including Pietro Parolin and Luis Antonio Tagle.

Robert Francis Prevost, Pope Leo XIV, succeeds Pope Francis. Leo spent much of his ministry in Peru and was elected a Roman Catholic cardinal only in 2023.