No Pope Chosen After Three Conclave Votes
‘Roman Catholic Cardinals failed to choose a new pope in two more votes on Tuesday at their secret Vatican conclave.
Black smoke, signaling that no papal candidate had won the required two thirds of votes among the 115 cardinals, emerged from a chimney above the frescoed Sistine Chapel just before noon (0600 EDT). When a pope is chosen the smoke will be white.
There were again a few moments of confusion among thousands of faithful gathered in St Peter’s Square as gray smoke initially emerged, as it did after Monday’s first vote.
“It wasn’t clear. It looked white, then black, but I guess any amount of black means they have not chosen. It’s disappointing,” said Briton Justin Fox in the square.
The smoke comes from burning ballot papers and any notes made by cardinals. Additives determine the color although the early confusion suggested this is an inexact science in the Vatican.
The red-robed cardinals, meeting in the chapel under Michelangelo’s majestic frescoed ceiling, will hold another voting session at 4 p.m. (1000 EDT).
The early votes were not expected to be decisive but are seen as a barometer of the strength of the conservative and moderate camps.’
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