The Pope was not elected - again a cloud of black smoke appeared coming from the roof of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.
After lunch, there will be two more votes – around 17:30 PM and 19 PM.
No smoke appears after each of the four votes. During the first votes in the morning and afternoon, white smoke is emitted only if the pope has been elected. Otherwise, the smoke is emitted only twice - at the end of the morning and evening sessions.
During this period, the cardinals participating in the election are strictly prohibited from communicating with the outside world.
A total of 133 cardinals under the age of 80 began a strictly ritualized and secret process on Wednesday, locked in complete isolation, to elect a successor to the late Pope Francis.
The ballots are burned and mixed with chemicals that reveal the course of the election – black smoke means the pope has not been elected, while white smoke indicates that a new pontiff has been elected.
If a pope is not elected today, the cardinals will continue voting up to four times a day until someone wins a two-thirds majority.
No pope in recent history has been elected in the first round, so black smoke was expected on Wednesday. However, given past experience, it is possible that the final outcome could be known as early as the second day.
Francis, the first pope from Latin America, was elected on the second day of the 2013 conclave, just like his predecessor Benedict XVI was in 2005.
There is no clear favorite to be the new pope, although Italian Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Philippine Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle are considered the best chances.
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