Fact Check Team: Electing a new pope: a step-by-step guide to the conclave

The death of Pope Francis has just set in motion the political process for the Catholic Church to select a new leader.

The process of the conclave

According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, within the first 15-20 days after the death of a pope, cardinals come together in Rome to make the next selection. Right now, there are 252 catholic cardinals, but only 135 can cast ballots because the ones over the age of 80 can only take part in debate but cannot vote. Cardinals hold a special mass, then head into the Sistine Chapel, where they take a vow of secrecy and vote in private, up to four times a day, until someone gets two-thirds of the vote.