The newly elected Pope Leo XIV, born in Chicago as Robert Prevost, is registered to vote in the United States and has previously voted in some Republican primaries, but he is not registered as a member of a political party, and his voter history does not indicate whom he voted for or why.
According to the Illinois State Board of Elections, there is no party registration in the state. Voters can choose only one party’s ballot during each primary, but that does not restrict which party’s ballot a voter is allowed to choose in subsequent primaries.
Newly elected Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass with the College of Cardinals inside the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican the day after his election as 267th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church, May 9, 2025.
Simone Risoluti/Vatican Media via AP
ABC News obtained Leo’s voter history from the Will County Clerk’s office, which is the current local election authority for him. (The office provided it in response to an inquiry referencing claims about Leo circulating online after he was announced as the new pope, and the records include a date of birth that matches Leo’s.)
Leo voted in the 2024 general election, the 2018 general election, the 2016 Republican primary, the 2014 general election and Republican primary and the 2012 general election and Republican primary, according to the voter history from the Will County Clerk’s Office.
The voting history does not say or indicate anything about how Leo voted in each election, why he voted in some elections and not in others or if he affiliates with any specific party, given that he would not have registered with any party in Illinois when registering to vote. ABC News has not obtained records showing which elections he voted in before 2012.
Leo could still vote in future elections.
In this Nov. 5, 2024, file photo, citizens cast their ballots for the 2024 United States Presidential Election at the Catholic Church Borgia in Chicago.
Anadolu via Getty Images, FILE
A voter living abroad can continue voting by mail as long as the voter maintains his or her voting address in Illinois, according to a spokesperson for the Illinois State Board of Elections. If that voter relinquishes his or her Illinois address, that voter’s right to vote for federal offices would still be protected under the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act.
The new pope’s personal politics are not known.
Prior to being elected pontiff, Leo had a presence on Twitter, and later X, where he sometimes shared messages that appeared to be critical of some of President Donald Trump’s policies.
Trump and Vance have both congratulated Leo. Various cardinals have indicated, separately, that they believe Leo will be able to build a connection with Trump.
Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York told reporters on Friday, “Will he want to build bridges to Donald Trump? I suppose that he would want to build bridges with the leader of every nation.”
Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, archbishop of Yangon in Myanmar, told ABC News’ James Longman that he believes Leo can “build a bridge” and have a dialogue with Trump.
ABC News’ Hannah Demissie, Chris Boccia, Terry Moran, Ariane Nalty, and Kelsey Walsh contributed to this report.