Why Italian Cardinal Becciu won't participate in conclave to elect new pope

Italian Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Becciu on Tuesday, April 29, renounced his right to participate in the upcoming papal conclave, in line with the wishes of the late Pope Francis.

The Sardinian cardinal will not join his peers in the secret conclave set for May 7, where they will elect a new pope.

His decision follows his 2023 conviction by a Vatican criminal court for embezzlement and abuse of office. He was sentenced to five and a half years in prison.

Cardinal Becciu, a former Deputy Secretary of State at the Vatican, is the first cardinal and highest-ranking Vatican official to be convicted.

Although the late Pope Francis allowed him to retain his title as cardinal in 2020, he stripped him of the rights associated with the office, including voting in a conclave.

Becciu had appealed his conviction and initially requested to take part in the conclave, but later stepped aside voluntarily, while continuing to assert his innocence.

“Having at heart the good of the Church, which I have served and will continue to serve with faithfulness and love, and in order to contribute to the community and serenity of the conclave, I have decided to obey – as I have always done – the will of Pope Francis not to enter the conclave, while remaining convinced of my innocence,” he said.

Two other cardinals have also withdrawn from the election due to health reasons, leaving 133 eligible voters, all of whom will vote next week. 

The College of Cardinals held their sixth General Congregation on Tuesday at the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel, now closed to visitors. The Vatican reported 183 cardinals in attendance, including 120 electors. 

Out of the 135 cardinals, twenty-two (22) were appointed by the late Pope Benedict XVI, and 108 from 71 countries across five continents were appointed by the late Pope Francis.

The late Pope Francis’ appointment makes the conclave less Eurocentric (with Europe having the highest number of cardinals at 53). It points to a possibility of a new pope who could follow the progressive path like his predecessor in leading the 1.4 billion Catholics globally.