Robert Prevost, who was promoted by Francis and has a knack for management and a zeal for missionary work, was a stronger candidate than many outside the Vatican knew.

The newly anointed Pope Leo XIV came to the balcony clad in a white cassock topped by a red cape trimmed in ermine and draped in a gold embroidered sash. He clasped his hands in prayer and smiled as the crowds chanted his name, and “ Viva La Papa! ”

Cardinals wrapped up their pre-conclave meetings Tuesday, trying to identify a possible new pope who could follow Pope Francis and make the 2,000-year-old Ca