The election of a Chicago-born cardinal as the first American pope on Thursday astonished Catholics and non-Catholics alike across the United States.
Some felt a burst of patriotic pride that a 2,000-year-old institution had chosen its new leader, Leo XIV, from a country that is about to celebrate its 250th birthday. Others hoped that an American pope might help smooth the rifts between the United States and its allies that have widened under President Trump.
“To have the first American pope is something new and something fresh,” said Alex Freeman, a 33-year-old event planner from Atlanta. Ms. Freeman was raised Baptist but attends Catholic services occasionally at a historically Black Catholic church. “It’s part of a new American narrative.”
Chicagoans, in particular, rejoiced at the news that the first American pope was a native of their city.
The Rev. William Lego, the pastor of St. Turibius Parish in Chicago, knew the new pope when they were young seminarians in Michigan. “I think my classmate just got it,” he said, sounding stunned, from his office. “They picked a good man.”
The Democratic political strategist David Axelrod, who once helped get another long-shot Chicago candidate elected to high office, sounded equally shocked. “Holy smokes!!” he wrote on social media. “An American pope! From Chicago!!”
But outside the pope’s hometown, other Americans said they had never heard of the pope until his name was announced in Latin from the St. Peter’s balcony.
“I didn’t even know there was a cardinal from the U.S. in the running,” said Danielle Charles, a 33-year-old insurance professional in San Antonio.
In Queens, Rosario Gonzales, a 72-year-old retired accountant and Filipino immigrant, she said she did not have a preference for an American pope, adding that his selection was “who the Lord preferred.”
“It doesn’t matter what nationality the pope is,” she said. “He’s still my pope.”
Despite closely watching the news, she said she didn’t know much about the new pope and had only heard his name for the first time today. Still, her first impression was positive. “He looks the part,” she said with a laugh. “He’s pope-ish.”
Ms. Gonzales said she hoped the new pope will continue Pope Francis’ outreach to non-Catholics and his compassion for children and migrants.
Jack Healy is a Phoenix-based national correspondent who focuses on the fast-changing politics and climate of the Southwest. He has worked in Iraq and Afghanistan and is a graduate of the University of Missouri’s journalism school.
Julie Bosman is the Chicago bureau chief for The Times, writing and reporting stories from around the Midwest.
Kate Selig is a Times national reporter and a member of the 2024-25 Times Fellowship class, a program for journalists early in their career.
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