Black smoke has once again emerged from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, signalling that the conclave to elect a new pope has failed to produce a result on its second and third ballots. The smoke was visible at 11:50 am local time (7:40 pm AEST), following the morning session where the 133 cardinals cast their votes to find a successor to Pope Francis, who led the Catholic Church for over a decade.
As no candidate secured the required two-thirds majority—89 votes—the cardinals will return to their accommodations in the Vatican, where they are being isolated for the duration of the conclave. After a lunch break, they will reconvene in the Sistine Chapel for further voting.
On Thursday, there remain two additional voting opportunities available for the cardinals to elect a new leader for the 1.4 billion-strong Catholic community. The anticipation continues as the cardinals aim to achieve a consensus in the coming rounds of voting.