Pope Leo XIV becomes first pontiff to vote in a US election
The Vatican confirmed that Pope Leo XIV, the first US-born pope, cast a mail-in ballot in Illinois ahead of the midterms, making him the first pontiff to vote in a US election. The church framed the vote as civic duty, and the White House relationship has been tense.
(See the reader poll and source context below).
What do the sources establish?
| Platform / Source | Core Stance / Quote | Engagement Metric | Timestamp |
|---|---|---|---|
| CBS News | Reported context: the Vatican confirmation and statement the Will County Clerk confirmation and New Lenox address the October 3 request and the surgery the Chicago Sun-Times first report | Not recorded | |
| BBC News | Reported context: the first US citizen pope context the clashes with Washington and the Trump quotes the pope's response on preaching peace the health update and South America trip | Not recorded |
Pope Leo XIV has become the first pontiff to vote in a US election, after the Vatican confirmed on Friday that the American-born pope submitted a mail-in ballot in his native Illinois ahead of next week's midterms.
The Holy See press office said the pope "has exercised his right to vote as a United States citizen, whenever he was eligible to do so", and that he "expresses his belief in the right and the duty of citizens to participate in democratic processes". The Will County Clerk's Office confirmed to CBS News that he is on the list of voters who requested a mail-in ballot, with a registered address in New Lenox, Illinois.
What is confirmed
The ballot was requested on October 3, according to the Chicago Sun-Times, which first reported the vote and quoted the chief of staff at the Will County Clerk's Office. That was days before the pope had surgery to remove the lower lobe of his right lung after being diagnosed with lung cancer.
The pope, who is 71, was released from hospital on October 17 and has been resuming his activities at the Vatican. He is moving ahead with plans to travel to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru in early November, the Vatican confirmed last week. Born Robert Prevost in Chicago, he is the first US citizen to hold the papacy after his selection in May 2025.
Why it is unusual
No pope has voted in a US election before, for the simple reason that no pope had been a US citizen. The act is ordinary in one sense: he is a citizen casting a ballot in the state where he is registered. It is unusual in another: the head of the Catholic Church is participating in the domestic politics of a country whose government he has publicly criticised.
The Vatican's framing is careful. The statement does not endorse a candidate or a party, and it presents the vote as an exercise of a civic right rather than a political intervention. That distinction matters because the Holy See's diplomatic role depends on being seen as above partisan contests.
The context with Washington
The relationship between the pope and the Trump administration has been tense. The BBC notes that since his selection the pope has clashed with the administration over immigration enforcement and over the US-Israel war with Iran. In April, after the pope called for peace following US-Israeli strikes on Iran, Trump said: "I don't think he's doing a very good job." He added: "We don't like a Pope that's going to say that it's OK to have a nuclear weapon. I'm not a big fan of Pope Leo."
The pope answered later that "the mission of the Church is to preach the Gospel, to preach peace", according to Reuters. "If someone wants to criticise me for preaching the Gospel... I hope simply to be listened to because of the value of God's words," he said.
What the vote does not mean
A single mail-in ballot does not change an election, and the Vatican has not suggested otherwise. It also does not tell voters how the pope would vote, since ballots are secret. What it does is put the leader of the Catholic Church on the record as participating in a US election at a moment when his relationship with the US government is strained.
The politics of the midterms are not about the pope. They are about control of Congress, the final years of the Trump presidency and a set of state-level races. But the image of the first American pope voting in Chicago is the kind of detail that travels, and it will be read by both supporters and critics of the administration as a signal, whether or not one was intended.
The health question
The timing of the ballot request is notable because it came just before the lung surgery. The pope's recovery has been a subject of public attention, and the Vatican has been issuing regular updates on his schedule. His planned South America trip next month is the next test of how quickly he intends to return to a full diary.
What to watch
The midterm elections are on November 3, and early voting is already under way in most states. The Vatican has not said whether the pope will comment on the results, and there is no indication that he plans to. For readers following the religion-and-politics thread, our coverage of the Obama-Trump arts rally captures how cultural figures are being drawn into the campaign, and the Kyiv missile attack after talks covers the Iran war that sits behind the pope's clash with Washington. The Wedgewood poll fabrication admission is a reminder to check the numbers rather than the noise.
The confirmed facts are narrow: a mail-in ballot, a request on October 3, an address in New Lenox, a confirmation from the Will County Clerk's Office and a Vatican statement about civic duty. Everything else about the pope's politics is inference.