Cardinals Set March 12 for Start of Vote to Choose New Pope
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The Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church will begin their secret vote to choose the successor to retired Pope Benedict XVI on March 12, paving the way for a new pontiff to be in place before Easter.
The cardinals set the date yesterday during their fifth day of preliminary talks to prepare the vote, the Vatican said in an e-mailed statement. The election, known as the conclave, is held in the 15th-century Sistine Chapel and attended by the 115 cardinals under the voting-age limit of 80.