Cardinals will gather on May 7 in a conclave in the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel to elect a new pope.United States President Donald Trump has faced backlash, including from Catholics, after he posted an artificial intelligence-generated photo showing himself as the pope days in advance of a conclave to elect the next pontiff.
Trump, who is not a Catholic and does not attend church regularly, posted the image on his Truth Social platform late on Friday, less than a week after attending the funeral of Pope Francis, who died last month at the age of 88. The White House then reposted it on its official X account.
The image shows an unsmiling Trump seated in an ornate chair, dressed in white papal vestments and headdress, with his right forefinger raised.
It came after Trump joked to reporters this week that he would like to be the next pope, just days before cardinals are due to start the conclave to elect the successor of Pope Francis.
pic.twitter.com/x2HrR939tn
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 3, 2025
Asked who he would like to succeed Francis, Trump said: “I’d like to be pope, that would be my number one choice.” Advertisement
Trump went on to say he did not have a preference, but said there was a cardinal in New York who was “very good”.
He appeared to be referring to the archbishop of New York, Timothy Dolan, a theological conservative and fiercely opposed to abortion.
‘Blatant insult to Catholics’
The irreverent posting, however, drew instant outrage on X, including from Republicans against Trump, a group that describes itself as “pro-democracy …