Date set for conclave to elect next pope, Vatican says: What to know

VATICAN CITY - A date has been set for the conclave to elect Pope Francis' successor, the Vatican announced early Monday. 

The secret voting was delayed for two days in order to help the Catholic cardinals get to know one another better and find consensus on a candidate before they are sequestered in the Sistine Chapel.

Here’s what to know:

Conclave start date set 

The backstory:

By tradition, the conclave must begin 15–20 days after the death or resignation of the pope. Francis died on Monday, April 21, meaning the conclave should start sometime between May 6 and May 11. 

What we know:

The conclave will begin on May 7, the Vatican announced on Monday. 

Venezuelan Cardinal Baltazar Enrique Porras Cardozo expressed confidence that once the conclave begins, a decision would be quick, "between two and three days."

Big picture view:

The College of Cardinals that will elect a new pope includes members from far corners of the globe whom Francis named over his 12-year papacy to bring in new points of view of the Catholic Church hierarchy. 

Many have spent little or no time in Rome getting to know their colleagues, injecting some uncertainty into a process that requires two-thirds of the voting-age cardinals to coalesce behind a single candidate.

There are a total of 135 cardinal electors — 108 of whom were appointed by Francis — and the last 20 were appointed in early December. Only cardinals under 80 are eligible to vote, and it is not clear how many of the 135 will participate. 

Dig deeper:

While not knowing each other well, many cardinals cited the desire to continue Francis’ pastoral focus on people who are marginalized and against war. But conservatives in the ranks may be more focused on forging unity and refocusing the church back to core doctrines emphasized by St. John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, rather than continuing Francis' social justice focus and outreach to women and gays.

British Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the 79-year-old archbishop of Westminster, was adamant that the church must strive for unity, and he downplayed divisions.

"The role of the pope is to essentially hold us together and that’s the grace we’ve been given from God," said Nichols.

Who will be the next pope?

What's next:

While it's impossible to predict who the next pope will be, some cardinals are considered to have better chances than others.

Any baptized Catholic male is eligible, though only cardinals have been selected since 1378. The winner must receive at least two-thirds of the vote from those cardinals under age 80 and thus eligible to participate.