In the first vote of the conclave (the secret meeting of cardinals) that began on the 7th (local time), the election of a new pope was unsuccessful.
Around 9 p.m. that day, black smoke rose from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City, signaling the failure to elect a pope, while white smoke would indicate a successful election.
It appears that in the first vote, no candidate received the support of more than two-thirds of the 133 participating cardinals, which would be over 89 votes.
In response, the cardinals are scheduled to conduct up to four votes a day, twice each in the morning and afternoon, starting on the 8th.
The Italian daily Corriere delle Sette reported, "The results (delay) came out 1 hour and 20 minutes later than expected," and noted, "The time for meditation before the vote was long, and several recently elected cardinals were not fluent in Italian, which seemed to prolong the voting process."
As a result, the crowd of over 40,000 gathered in Saint Peter's Square in the Vatican to await the vote results now has to look forward to the next day.
According to foreign media, the decision on the pope is likely to be made on the 8th or 9th. In the last ten conclaves, the average duration for electing a pope was about three days, and it has never taken more than five days.
The most prominent candidates for pope include Cardinal Pietro Parolin (Italy), the second in command at the Vatican and a close aide to the late Pope Francis, and Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle (Philippines), who is classified as a reformer.
However, there is room for a turnaround. Pope Francis was not a leading candidate in the 2013 conclave but was elected after the fifth vote on the second day.