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Pope Leo's midterm ballot puts civic duty beside papal neutrality

The Vatican confirms his mail-in vote, while the report examines how an American citizen's participation intersects with his role as a sovereign head of state.

Channel: CNN ·

United StatesStory of November 1, 2026Trari Newsroom

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Why Pope Leo’s US midterm vote is making history

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0:14The Vatican says Leo regards participation in democratic processes as a citizen's right and duty.
1:37Cornish cites reporting that Leo requested his Illinois mail ballot under his birth name, Robert Francis Prevost.
2:29Hale describes the ballot's route through the pope's brother in Illinois to the Vatican.
4:40Hale raises potential legal scrutiny concerning a foreign sovereign's participation in U.S. federal elections.
4:59A voting-record graphic shows participation in both Republican and Democratic primaries.
6:13Archival remarks show Leo challenging opposition to abortion alongside support for capital punishment or mistreatment of immigrants.

Pope Leo XIV has voted in the U.S. midterm elections, with the Vatican presenting his decision as an exercise of citizenship rather than a partisan intervention.

The United States' Cable News Network (CNN) reports that the first American pope submitted a mail-in ballot in Chicago. Its report, "Why Pope Leo's US midterm vote is making history", describes him as the first pope to vote in a U.S. election and likely the first to vote in a secular democratic election.

Anchor Brianna Keilar reads the Vatican's statement: "The Holy Father expresses his belief in the right and the duty of citizens to participate in democratic processes."

Vatican correspondent Christopher Lamb says the decision surprised some Vatican insiders because of the papacy's customary political neutrality. Leo is both the Catholic Church's leader and Vatican City's sovereign, making an otherwise ordinary absentee ballot an unusual act for his office.

In a second segment, Audie Cornish cites Chicago Sun-Times reporting that he requested the ballot under his birth name, Robert Francis Prevost. Christopher Hale, author of the newsletter Letters from Leo, describes its journey through the pope's brother in Illinois to the Vatican. Hale distinguishes between Prevost participating as an American citizen and the pope intervening institutionally in an election.

Hale also raises the possibility of legal scrutiny over a foreign sovereign's participation in a U.S. federal election. That is a question discussed in the segment, not a reported court ruling against the vote.

The report reviews Leo's participation in both Republican and Democratic primaries, without identifying his choices on this ballot. It then turns to his public moral teaching. In archival footage, Leo challenges the consistency of opposing abortion while supporting the death penalty, and criticizes mistreatment of immigrants.

Hale's interpretation is that Leo approaches political questions through gospel teachings rather than party affiliation: "...he acts as a minister, he acts as a priest and a bishop, not as a politician."

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