The Vatican has confirmed that Pope Leo XIV has submitted a mail-in ballot in Chicago for the United States midterm elections, making him the first sitting pope known to have taken part in an American election. The confirmation came on Friday, October 30, ahead of Election Day on November 3, and it marks a moment with no precedent in the modern history of the papacy: a reigning pontiff, who is also a United States citizen, exercising a vote in a secular democratic election.
Leo, the first American pope, was born Robert Francis Prevost in Chicago and became pope in May 2025. He is registered to vote in New Lenox, Illinois, in Will County, where his brother lives, according to voter records cited in news reports. The ballot was submitted from Vatican City and routed to Chicago, a journey that underlines just how unusual this vote is: a head of state who leads the Holy See, an absolute monarchy that holds no elections of its own, casting a ballot as a private American citizen.
Key Takeaways
- The Vatican confirmed on October 30 that Pope Leo XIV has submitted his mail-in ballot in Chicago for the November 3 US midterm elections.
- Leo is the first sitting pope known to have voted in a US election, and he may also be the first pope to vote in any secular democratic election.
- The Vatican has not disclosed which candidates the pope voted for, and his ballot choices remain private.
What the Vatican Confirmed
In a statement, the Holy See Press Office said Leo “has exercised his right to vote as a United States citizen, whenever he was eligible to do so” and that “in keeping with this long-standing practice of civic participation, he has submitted his mail-in ballot in Chicago.” The statement also said the pope believes “in the right and the duty of citizens to participate in democratic processes.” The Vatican added that Leo voted whenever he was eligible during his years living in Peru, before he became pope.
Radio station WJOL in Joliet, Illinois, was the first to report, on October 23, that Leo had requested a mail-in ballot. Voter records show he requested the ballot on October 3. That request came ten days before he underwent surgery to remove a cancerous tumour from his right lung, according to news reports. The Vatican framed the vote as a private exercise of citizenship rather than a public endorsement, and it did not say which candidates or measures the pope supported.
Why This Is a First
It is the first time a sitting pope is known to have taken part in an American election. No previous reigning pontiff held American citizenship and a voter registration that would have allowed such a vote, and the Holy See itself does not hold elections for its leader. Leo is different: he holds both United States and Peruvian citizenship, he was born in Chicago, and his voter registration in Illinois remained in place after his election as pope.
It is the first time a sitting pope is known to have taken part in an American election.
Illinois election records cited in reports show that, as Robert Prevost, Leo voted in five primary elections since 2000 and in every general election since 2000 except in 2020 and 2022, including the 2024 presidential race. Illinois does not register voters by party, so state records list him as undeclared, and the records do not reveal which candidates he chose in any election. That history is part of why the Vatican described this vote as a continuation of a long-standing practice, rather than a break with it.
- First sitting pontiff known to vote in a US election
- Mail-in ballot submitted in Chicago for the November 3 midterms
- Registered in New Lenox, Illinois, under his birth name, Robert Francis Prevost
- Ballot requested on October 3, before lung surgery later that month
- The Vatican has not disclosed the pope’s candidate choices
What Was on the Illinois Ballot
Reports said the Illinois ballot includes the race to re-elect Governor JB Pritzker, the contest to choose a successor to retiring Senator Dick Durbin, and a House race between Democratic Representative Jonathan Jackson and Republican Christian Maxwell. Those are the statewide and local contests facing Illinois voters in this midterm cycle, alongside the wider national battle for control of Congress.
The vote comes as early voting for the midterms has already drawn record numbers across the United States, with tens of millions of ballots cast before Election Day. Campaigning has intensified in the final days, with rallies and clashes on the campaign trail in the run-up to November 3. Leo’s ballot, cast quietly by mail from Rome, stands in sharp contrast to that noise: no speech, no endorsement, and no announcement of his choices.
What to Watch Next
Voters across the United States will head to the polls on November 3, when the Illinois races on the pope’s ballot, including the governor’s race and the contest to succeed Senator Durbin, will be decided. The Vatican has already said what it intends to say about the vote itself: that Leo submitted his mail-in ballot in Chicago as a United States citizen, as he has done whenever he was eligible. Which candidates he chose remains undisclosed, and that part of the story will stay private, as it does for every voter.