That signified the 133 cardinal electors had chosen him as a successor to Francis, who died last month 35.

"Peace be with you all," he told the cheering crowd, speaking in fluent Italian.

Prevost, 69 and originally from Chicago, has spent most of his career as a missionary in Peru and has dual Peruvian nationality. He became a cardinal only in 2023.

The appointment was welcomed by the Peruvian president Dina Boluarte. President Donald Trump also swiftly congratulated him.

However, the new pope has a history of criticizing Trump and Vice President JD Vance s policies, according to posts on the X account of Robert Prevost.

CALL FOR CHARITY

Prevost becomes the 267th Catholic pope following the death of Francis.

Leo thanked Francis in his speech and repeated his predecessor s call for a Church that is engaged with the modern world and "is always looking for peace, charity and being close to people, especially those who are suffering".

The last pope to take the name Leo led the Church from 1878-1903. Leo XIII was known for his devoted focus to social justice issues, and is often credited with laying the foundation for modern Catholic social teaching.

Pope Leo faces challenges including budget issues, questions about the role of women and dwindling participation in Europe.

SNAP, a US-based advocacy group for victims of clerical sex abuse, expressed "grave concern" about his election, renewing accusations that Prevost failed to take action against suspected predatory priests in the past in Chicago and in Peru.

In the Peruvian coastal city of Chiclayo, some 5,000 kilometers (3,000 miles) from new Pope Leo XIV s hometown of Chicago, Catholics took to the streets and church bells rang on Thursday to celebrate the election of the former missionary whom they embrace as one of their own.

Cardinal Robert Prevost, chosen as the new leader of the Roman Catholic Church, is a dual U.S.-Peruvian citizen who worked for decades in the north of Peru, first as a missionary and later as Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023.

In the small city, the faithful gathered in front of the cathedral in the heat on Thursday after white smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. As the announcement was made, they jumped and cheered. Bells tolled around the city.

"We are excited by this blessing from God," Jesús León Ángeles, coordinator of a Catholic group in Chiclayo who has known Prevost since 2018, told Reuters by phone.

In the Plaza de Armas, the main square of Peru s capital Lima, dozens of people gathered at the cathedral next to the government palace.

"It is a tremendous gift from heaven that he is Peruvian. For us the Pope is Peruvian. He is Peruvian because he has lived decades in Peru, he was a bishop in Chiclayo," said lawyer Carolina Flores..

Lima resident Salvador Oliva Ramos said that he was sure the new pope would come back to visit his adopted homeland and enjoy some of the local cuisine.