He chose the name Leo XIV, a senior cardinal deacon announced. The 69-year-old Chicago native is the first American pope and is seen as a diplomat in the church.

In an instant, Cardinal Robert Prevost became the most powerful and influential American Catholic when he was selected to be pope and renamed Pope Leo XIV on May 8.

Following Cardinal Robert Prevost's appointment as the first American-born pope, past social media posts about the VP surfaced. Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Following ...