Pope Leo XIV requested an absentee ballot for the U.S. midterm elections

Pope Leo XIV, a registered voter in Will County, Illinois, requested an absentee ballot for next week’s U.S. midterm elections. The request was filed on October 3, at his residence in Vatican City, according to the county clerk’s office, cited by NBC News.

Local authorities confirmed that the completed ballot has not yet been received. It is unclear whether the pontiff has already voted or whether the document was mailed.

Leo XIV could become the first pope to vote in a United States election after becoming, in May 2025, the first American pontiff. Public records indicate that he participated in the 2012, 2014, 2018 and 2024 general elections, as well as the 2012, 2014 and 2016 Republican primaries.

The pope returned to the Vatican on October 18 after being hospitalized at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital. Doctors removed the lower lobe of his right lung, where an adenocarcinoma had been identified. Subsequent tests showed that no further treatment was necessary.

The Vatican confirmed that Leo XIV will continue his trip to Uruguay, Argentina and Peru, scheduled for November 6–17.