President Donald Trump said the selection of Cardinal Robert F. Prevost to be pope is "a great honor" for the U.S., noting he will be the first American-born pontiff.

Then-Cardinal Robert Prevost, a Chicago native, pulled the lever in Republican primaries in 2012, 2014, and 2016 — but hasn’t voted in a GOP primary since.

In the Peruvian coastal city of Chiclayo, some 5,000 kilometers (3,000 miles) from new Pope Leo XIV's hometown of Chicago, Catholics took to the streets and church bells rang on Thursday to celebrate the election of the former missionary who they embrace as one of their own.

Peace be with you,' Pope Leo XIV said in greeting the thousands of people who packed St. Peter's Square, a plaza brimming with emotion.

We have completely opposite political views, but we have never let this interfere with our relationship before.

Pope Leo XIV is celebrating his first Mass, a day after his historic election as the first North American pope in the church’s 2,000-year history. The election of cardinal Robert Prevost as the new pontiff overcame the traditional prohibition against a pope from the United States.

From an altar boy growing up in a working class area of Chicago, Robert Prevost, 69, has worked his way through the ranks to become the first US pope to be elected in the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church.

Leaders called the decision from the conclave “a powerful moment for the Catholic Church — and for American Catholics.”

The judge who blocked parts of President Trump’s election integrity order sparked backlash – but the ruling may not be as radical as critics suggest.