June 15, 2025
Pope Leo XIV assumed the papacy just weeks ago, and most Catholics view him favorably. Just under half of the general public agree. While 44% have a favorable opinion of the pope, only 10% hold an unfavorable opinion. Forty-six percent don’t know enough about him to have an opinion.
According to an AP-NORC Poll taken in October 2015, a few years after Pope Francis was elected pontiff, Francis’ favorability was similar to Leo’s now.
Support for the new pope is high among Catholics. His support among Catholics is at about the same level as Francis’ was in October 2015.
Adults age 60 or older are more likely to have a positive opinion of Leo than adults under 30 (52% v. 39%).
Growing up in Chicago has not given the pope an edge among Midwesterners. His support is similar with residents nationwide. And he receives similar support from Democrats (48%) and Republicans (42%).
The nationwide poll was conducted June 5-9, 2025 using the AmeriSpeak® Panel, the probability-based panel of NORC at the University of Chicago. Online and telephone interviews using landlines and cell phones were conducted with 1,158 adults. The overall margin of sampling error is +/- 4.0 percentage points.
- Suggested Citation: AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. “Most Catholics have a favorable opinion of Pope Leo XIV.” (June 2025). https://apnorc.org/projects/most-catholics-have-a-favorable-opinion-of-pope-leo-xiv/
