Black Smoke: Catholic cardinals’ ballot battle continues over election of new pope
For the second time, black smoke came out from the Sistine Chapel chimney before noon on Thursday at the Vatican, signalling that a new pope was not elected.
This comes after the first meeting of Cardinals on Wednesday, which failed to produce a new pope for the Catholic Church.
The election of the 267th pope, which commenced on Wednesday, saw 133 cardinals from across the globe converge to choose a new pontiff.
However, the release of black smoke on Wednesday and Thursday meetings means the cardinals will continue the election process until a pope is elected.
This followed the burial of Pope Francis, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who passed on Easter Monday morning at the age of 88.
A new pope will poll a two-thirds majority to emerge during the election process. Then, white smoke will be released from the Sistine Chapel chimney.
Earlier on Tuesday, the mobile phone signal was shut down to block any form of disruptive surveillance or external interference during the new pope’s election.
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