how many votes for pope francis
Pope Francis (Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio at the time) was elected in the 2013 papal conclave on the fifth ballot with an estimated 85–90 votes out of 115 cardinal electors, comfortably above the 77 votes needed.
How many votes did Pope Francis get?
The exact vote counts in a conclave are supposed to remain secret, so the Vatican has never officially published how many votes he received.
However, multiple later reconstructions and leaks by Vatican journalists and historians report that on the final, fifth ballot, Bergoglio received about 85 votes (some accounts say “at least 90”) out of 115.
- Total cardinal electors in 2013: 115.
- Required two‑thirds majority: 77 votes.
- Reported votes for Bergoglio on final ballot: about 85 (other reports: at least 90).
Reported ballot-by-ballot (leaked)
These figures come from an inside account by Vatican reporter Gerard O’Connell and similar summaries, and are not official but widely cited.
| Ballot | Jorge Bergoglio (Francis) | Angelo Scola | Marc Ouellet | Others |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st ballot (evening, 12 March) | 26 votes | [3]30 votes | [3]22 votes | [3]37 votes (including others listed) | [3]
| 2nd ballot (morning, 13 March) | 45 votes | [3]38 votes | [3]24 votes | [3]8 votes | [3]
| 3rd ballot (morning) | 56 votes | [3]41 votes | [3]15 votes | [3]3 votes | [3]
| 4th ballot (afternoon) | 67 votes | [3]32 votes | [3]13 votes | [3]3 votes | [3]
| 5th ballot (decisive) | ≈85 votes (some say ≥90) | [5][3]20 votes | [3]8 votes | [3]2 votes | [3]
Why the numbers are “estimated”
- Conclave rules require secrecy; ballots and detailed tallies are burned after the election.
- The numbers above come from later testimony and “leaked” reconstructions, so they should be seen as informed but unofficial.
In forum discussions and quick-news summaries, you’ll usually see the answer phrased as: Pope Francis received around 85–90 votes on the final ballot, well above the 77 needed, after a rapid surge over five ballots in March 2013.
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.