This is a photo collection curated by AP photo editors.
Photographers take pictures of a cardinal as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Peter Ebere Okpaleke is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Argentine Cardinal Ángel Sixto Rossi speaks to reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jorge Enrique Jiménez Carvajal is surrounded by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão, Archbishop of Goa and Damão, arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Vicente Bokalic Iglic, from Argentina, is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Colombian cardinals Luis José Rueda Aparicio, left, and Rubén Salazar Gómez arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
British Cardinal Vincent Nichols is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Argentine Cardinal Ángel Sixto Rossi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
St Peter's Basilica is seen in the background as a cardinal arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller stands in a gateway on his way to a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera exits the college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Aquilino Bocos, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Cardinal Aquilino Bocos walks in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Cardinal Aquilino Bocos, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle leads a rosary prayer outside the Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, where the late Pope Francis will be buried, in Rome, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco reacts to a reporter's question as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Security and police make way for Cardinal Sean O'Malley arriving for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Francesco Montenegro walks at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Cardinal François-Xavier Bustillo arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco, center, is approached by a reporter as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas meets the media in front of St. Mary Major Basilica, in Rome, Friday April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas arrives to the St. Mary Major Basilica, in Rome, Friday April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal George Jakob Koovakad, second from right, arrives for the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Cardinal Soane Patita Parvini Mafi, Bishop of Tonga, arrives for funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, of Nigeria, poses for photos with a group after the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, of Nigeria, greets people in St. Peter's Square after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, of Nigeria, poses for photos with a group from Venezuela after the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi arrives for the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, of Nigeria, speaks to people after the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cardinal Reinhardt Marx speaks during a press conference at the German Dioceses Union headquarters in Rome, hours after the solemn funerals for late Pope Francis at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis)
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, center, presides a mass on the second of nine days of mourning for late Pope Francis, in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinals, including Chibly Langlois, center left, and Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, center right, arrive for a mass presided by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, on the second of nine days of mourning for late Pope Francis, in St. Peter’s Square, at the Vatican, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal Jose Cobo Cano walks in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican at the end of a mass on the second of nine days of mourning for late Pope Francis presided over by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Cardinal Sean O' Malley arrives at St. Mary Major Basilica for a Vesper service, in Rome, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
A journalist scans with his smartphone Cardinal Fernando Filoni outside St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Christoph Schönborn poses for selfie photos with people outside St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Anthony Poola, from India, arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
British Cardinal Vincent Nichols is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Pedro Barreto arrives for the college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal François-Xavier Bustillo arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco, right, reacts to a reporter's question as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Filoni arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Seán Patrick O'Malley arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez is approached by a reporter as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Sean Brady is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, left, is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Filoni is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jorge Enrique Jiménez Carvajal is approached by a reporter as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal José Cobo Cano is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, followed by Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, left, and Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Baldassare Reina, center, leads a prayer for Pope Francis, at the St. John Lateran Basilica in Rome, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
South -Sudanese Cardinal Stephen Ameyu Martin Mulla poses in hi residence in Juba, South Sudan, Wednesday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Florence Miettaux)
Cardinal Francesco Montenegro arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Fernando Filoni is approached by reporters as he leaves the college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Aquilino Bocos walks in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera is approached by a reporter as he exits the college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib, left, and Cardinal Sean O'Malley, arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi boards a vehicle at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi smiles before boarding a vehicle at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib speaks to the media in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, center, arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib speaks to the media in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schrieber)
Cardinal Mario Grech arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schrieber)
Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller is approached by a reporter as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schrieber)
Cardinal Francesco Montenegro arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi, center, arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Sean O'Malley, center, waits for another cardinal as they arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib, left, and Cardinal Sean O'Malley, arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinals arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
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Cardinals, including Chibly Langlois, center left, and Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, center right, arrive for a mass presided by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, on the second of nine days of mourning for late Pope Francis, in St. Peter’s Square, at the Vatican, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Photographers take pictures of a cardinal as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Peter Ebere Okpaleke is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Argentine Cardinal Ángel Sixto Rossi speaks to reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jorge Enrique Jiménez Carvajal is surrounded by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Filipe Neri Ferrão, Archbishop of Goa and Damão, arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Vicente Bokalic Iglic, from Argentina, is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Colombian cardinals Luis José Rueda Aparicio, left, and Rubén Salazar Gómez arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
British Cardinal Vincent Nichols is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Argentine Cardinal Ángel Sixto Rossi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
St Peter's Basilica is seen in the background as a cardinal arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller stands in a gateway on his way to a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera exits the college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Aquilino Bocos, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Cardinal Aquilino Bocos walks in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Cardinal Aquilino Bocos, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Cardinal Luis Antonio Gokim Tagle leads a rosary prayer outside the Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica, where the late Pope Francis will be buried, in Rome, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco reacts to a reporter's question as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Security and police make way for Cardinal Sean O'Malley arriving for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Francesco Montenegro walks at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Cardinal François-Xavier Bustillo arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco, center, is approached by a reporter as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas meets the media in front of St. Mary Major Basilica, in Rome, Friday April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Rolandas Makrickas arrives to the St. Mary Major Basilica, in Rome, Friday April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal George Jakob Koovakad, second from right, arrives for the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Cardinal Soane Patita Parvini Mafi, Bishop of Tonga, arrives for funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, of Nigeria, poses for photos with a group after the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, of Nigeria, greets people in St. Peter's Square after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, of Nigeria, poses for photos with a group from Venezuela after the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi arrives for the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan, of Nigeria, speaks to people after the funeral of Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cardinal Reinhardt Marx speaks during a press conference at the German Dioceses Union headquarters in Rome, hours after the solemn funerals for late Pope Francis at the Vatican, Saturday, April 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis)
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, center, presides a mass on the second of nine days of mourning for late Pope Francis, in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinals, including Chibly Langlois, center left, and Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, center right, arrive for a mass presided by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, on the second of nine days of mourning for late Pope Francis, in St. Peter’s Square, at the Vatican, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal Jose Cobo Cano walks in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican at the end of a mass on the second of nine days of mourning for late Pope Francis presided over by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Cardinal Sean O' Malley arrives at St. Mary Major Basilica for a Vesper service, in Rome, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
A journalist scans with his smartphone Cardinal Fernando Filoni outside St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Christoph Schönborn poses for selfie photos with people outside St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Anthony Poola, from India, arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
British Cardinal Vincent Nichols is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Pedro Barreto arrives for the college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal François-Xavier Bustillo arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco, right, reacts to a reporter's question as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Filoni arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Friday, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Seán Patrick O'Malley arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Gregorio Rosa Chávez is approached by a reporter as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Sean Brady is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, left, is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Stephen Chow Sau-yan arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fernando Filoni is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Jorge Enrique Jiménez Carvajal is approached by a reporter as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal José Cobo Cano is approached by reporters as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, followed by Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, left, and Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Monday, April 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Cardinal Baldassare Reina, center, leads a prayer for Pope Francis, at the St. John Lateran Basilica in Rome, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
South -Sudanese Cardinal Stephen Ameyu Martin Mulla poses in hi residence in Juba, South Sudan, Wednesday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Florence Miettaux)
Cardinal Francesco Montenegro arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Fernando Filoni is approached by reporters as he leaves the college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Aquilino Bocos walks in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera is approached by a reporter as he exits the college of cardinals' meeting, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib, left, and Cardinal Sean O'Malley, arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi boards a vehicle at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi smiles before boarding a vehicle at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib speaks to the media in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, center, arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib speaks to the media in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schrieber)
Cardinal Mario Grech arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schrieber)
Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller is approached by a reporter as he arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schrieber)
Cardinal Francesco Montenegro arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi, center, arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Sean O'Malley, center, waits for another cardinal as they arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Fernando Natalio Chomalí Garib, left, and Cardinal Sean O'Malley, arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa arrives for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Cardinals arrive for a college of cardinals' meeting at the Vatican, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Alaska U.S. Senate candidate Dan Sullivan acknowledges that sharing a name and party affiliation with the incumbent Republican gives him “an instant megaphone" in the crowded primary race. But Sullivan said his campaign isn't a sham or something Democrats put him up to doing.
He said friends for years have jokingly referred to him as senator and asked if he has ever thought about running. He said he’s been considering it for more than a decade.
“This is my choice,” Sullivan, who lives in the small fishing community of Petersburg, said in a telephone interview Monday.
Last week, Sen. Dan Sullivan accused the challenger Sullivan of “trying to trick” voters to help his main rival in the race, Democratic former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola. The senator suggested the other Sullivan's entrance in the August primary was part of a coordinated effort by Democrats and Peltola's campaign to confuse voters, an accusation they deny. He threatened litigation to get to the bottom of it.
The issue is of national concern to Republicans because they are seeking to hold onto their majority in the U.S. Senate in what is expected to be a difficult midterm election year for the party in power. Sullivan, the challenger, dismissed claims that his candidacy is a merely a ruse to undermine the senator's reelection chances.
He said he has had no contact with Peltola's campaign — “zero, none, zilch” — and said “no” when asked if anyone from the state Democratic Party or any national Democratic operatives had contacted him to run.
A Peltola spokesperson, Harry Child, has said the campaign “has no involvement with either Sullivan campaign.” The executive director of the Alaska Democratic Party, Jenny-Marie Stryker, said her organization “is in no way affiliated with either Dan Sullivan.” A Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesperson, Monica Robinson, replied “no” when asked if the group had been involved in urging the challenger Sullivan to run.
Sullivan called sharing a name with the Alaska's incumbent U.S. senator “a matter of fate” and said he had done nothing wrong.
“I have every right to run for whatever office I'm qualified for, and I’m qualified for this office,” the challenger said, adding: “I think I’m doing what most Americans would think would be a patriotic thing to do when you’re unsatisfied with the status quo. You stand up and say, I’m going to fight for things I believe that are going to make my community better.”
Ballots in prior years in Alaska have not identified the incumbent, but the Alaska Division of Elections’ current candidate list online does. It also distinguishes the candidates using a middle initial — Dan S. Sullivan for the senator and Dan J. Sullivan for the challenger.
Alaska has open primaries in which the top four vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the ranked choice general election in November. Sen. Sullivan's campaign worries having two Dan Sullivans on the ballot could confuse voters.
Sen. Sullivan's campaign, in a statement Monday, said, “Alaskans deserve a fair and honest election — not political games meant to manipulate the ballot and benefit Democrats.”
The challenger said he was registered with the limited government-leaning Alaskan Independence Party for decades, until the party's dissolution late last year. Election officials had said voters registered with the party could change their affiliation but if they did not, they'd be shown as “undeclared.” Sullivan said he then was listed as undeclared until filing to run for office, when he registered as Republican.
He said he was motivated in part by his late father, whom he described as a “true, compassionate, conservative Republican.” He said if he had to label himself, it would be “a pragmatic Republican centrist” — similar to Alaska's senior U.S. senator, Lisa Murkowski, but “with touches of a Rand Paul Republican in there.”
He said he grew up in the Chicago area but was drawn to Alaska and put down roots nearly 50 years ago in Petersburg. The fishing community of about 3,400 in southeast Alaska's Tongass National Forest is known as “Little Norway” for its many residents with Scandinavian roots. He worked for the U.S. Forest Service before changing careers and becoming a teacher. He has since retired.
Like most communities in Alaska, Petersburg isn't connected to the state's main road system and is accessible only by air or water. Juneau, the nearest city, is about 45 minutes away by plane.
Petersburg sits on Mitkof Island, which is distinguished by mountains, thick stands of forest and boggy areas called muskeg. Sea lions hauled up on buoys and humpback whales and orcas are common sights off its shores.
Sullivan, who will turn 69 this weekend, passed on an interview request last Friday, he said, because the king salmon were running and he wanted to fish.
As far as his run for office, the challenger said he plans to do some fundraising and hopes to campaign in the state's larger cities, including Anchorage and Juneau, but he so far has no firm plans to do so and is working on the details.
He finds the current dustup over his Senate run — and the incumbent's reaction — a bit surprising.
“I guess my thought would be, ‘Dude, why don’t you just run your campaign?’ If you’ve got a strong record, run on your record. People will love you for it and you’ll be swept back into office,” he said Monday. “Why would he be concerned that a guy out of Petersburg is this huge threat?”
Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, heads to a closed-door meeting with fellow Republicans, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, June 2, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)