White smoke billowed from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican on Thursday afternoon, signaling the successful election of a new pope after just four rounds of voting.

A total of 133 cardinals from 70 countries, a record number of represented nations, gathered in complete isolation to conduct the voting.

This follows more than two weeks after the departure of Pope Francis, with global media closely following the event to report to approximately 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide.

Pope Leo XIV addressed the crowd from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica on Thursday, delivering his first public message after his election, saying, “Peace be upon you all.”

The first American pope in history called for “building bridges” through “dialogue,” emphasizing the importance of “moving forward without fear, united, hand in hand with God and with one another.”

Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected by the cardinals of the world to become the first American to hold the position.