Pope Leo Votes In US Midterm Elections, Vatican Confirms

Pope Leo XIV has develop into the primary pontiff in historical past to vote in a United States election after submitting a mail-in poll in Chicago forward of the November 3 midterm elections.

The Vatican confirmed on Friday, October 30, that the Chicago-born Pope had exercised his voting rights as a US citizen, describing participation in democratic processes as each a proper and an obligation.

In a press release, the Holy See Press Office stated the Pope had submitted his poll by mail to Chicago, the place he stays a registered voter.

“Pope Leo XIV has exercised his right to vote as a United States citizen, whenever he was eligible to do so,” the assertion stated.

The Vatican additionally confirmed that he voted throughout his years of residence in Peru every time he was eligible.

The improvement adopted an earlier report by the Chicago Sun-Times that the Pope had requested a mail-in poll by means of the Will County Clerk’s Office on October 3.

The Pope, whose delivery title is Robert Francis Prevost, is registered at an tackle in New Lenox, Illinois.

According to data from the Illinois State Board of Elections, Prevost has participated in a number of US elections, together with presidential and first elections.

The data present that he requested Democratic main ballots in 2008 and 2010, and Republican main ballots in 2012, 2014 and 2016. However, they don’t reveal which candidates he supported.

The November 3 midterm elections will decide all 435 seats within the US House of Representatives, alongside 35 seats within the Senate, as voters additionally elect governors and different state and native officers.

Pope Leo, the primary American to steer the Catholic Church, has remained a US citizen since his election as pontiff in May 2025.

His participation marks an unprecedented second within the historical past of the papacy, with the Vatican reaffirming his perception in residents’ duty to participate in democratic processes.