Pope Leo XIV may not only be the first American to lead the Catholic Church, but he may also be the first American to lead the Catholic Church who votes by mail in an American election.
A Chicago native, the Holy Father, birth name Robert Francis Prevost, is still a registered voter in the state of Illinois, and the Will County clerk’s office confirmed to the Chicago Sun Times that his is among the names requesting a mail-in ballot for the upcoming midterm elections.
“Robert Francis Prevost is on the list of individuals who requested a vote by mail ballot for the upcoming election,” Kim Fladhammer, Will County clerk’s office chief of staff, told the outlet.
The pope reportedly requested the mail-in ballot on October 3. Previous records show that he voted in the 2012, 2014, and 2016 Republican primaries in the state of Illinois, as well as the 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2024 general elections. He also voted in the 2008 and 2010 Democrat primaries.
“There is no such thing as an absentee ballot in Illinois law anymore. So anyone can vote by mail if they so choose. There is also a law called UOCAVA, The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act that is mostly for the military, but it’s also for U.S. citizens who are overseas,” Matt Dietrich, spokesman for the Illinois State Board of Elections, said. “Any Illinois registered voter can vote by mail. Until 2010, it was considered absentee, and you had to have an excuse. But that’s all gone away. So that’s obviously what he’s doing.”
As to whether or not the pope will actually vote remains to be seen. According to NBC Chicago, the chief of staff for the Clerk’s Office confirmed that they have not “yet received a ballot from the Vatican, and time is running out to get that ballot postmarked in time for the November 3 election.”
“Since he did not renounce his U.S. citizenship when he became pope, he will remain eligible to vote in the United States so long as he chooses according to U.S. law,” added the outlet.
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