Five Spanish cardinals are participating in the conclave, as electors and papal candidates, starting this Wednesday

Eduardo González A total of 133 cardinals with the right to vote (and therefore to be elected) will participate, starting on May 7, in the election of the Pope who will succeed the recently deceased Francis. In total, there are 135 cardinals with the right to vote, but two cardinals will not be able to participate in the conclave for health reasons. Among them is a Spaniard, the 79-year-old Cardinal Archbishop Emeritus of Valencia (and former vice president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference), Antonio Cañizares. Although his absence does not prevent him from appearing as one of the "papable" candidates, the fact that he cannot exercise his right to vote considerably reduces his chances, given the current circumstances. However, Spain has four other cardinals with the right to vote. In total, there are thirteen cardinals in our country, but eight of them (including Antonio María Rouco, president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference for four terms, between 1999 and 2014) will not be able to participate in the conclave because they have already reached the age of eighty. Those who are eligible for the Pontificate are José Cobo, current Archbishop of Madrid and Vice President of the Spanish Episcopal Conference; Juan José Omella, Archbishop of Barcelona; Carlos Osoro, Cardinal Emeritus of Madrid; and Ángel Fernández Artime, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. The Spanish candidate with the best chance of becoming Pope, according to estimates, is Juan José Omella. In addition to those named, the list of papal candidates also includes the Spanish Salesian Cristóbal López Romero, current archbishop of Rabat, who, however, is listed as Paraguayan, having acquired Paraguayan nationality after residing in that country for 18 years, between 1984 and 2002. The conclave will begin on May 7 at 4:30 p.m., following the celebration of the Mass "Pro eligendo Pontifice" in St. Peter's Basilica, presided over by the Dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, according to Vatican News, the Holy See's news agency. According to the Constitution, the Conclave – from the Latin "cum clave," meaning closed – begins between the fifteenth and twentieth day after the Pope's death, after the Novendiali, the nine days of celebrations in suffrage for the soul of the deceased Pontiff. Furthermore, from the moment the Apostolic See legitimately becomes vacant, the cardinal electors present must wait a full fifteen days until those absent arrive. A qualified majority of two-thirds will be required to elect the Pope. Four ballots are scheduled per day, two in the morning and two in the afternoon. In any case, after the thirty-third or thirty-fourth ballot, a direct and obligatory runoff is held between the two cardinals who received the highest number of votes in the previous ballot. The two cardinals remaining in contention may not actively participate in the vote. In this runoff, the candidate who achieves a two-thirds majority will become the new Pope.

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