Pope voted in U.S. election because he's "proud to be an American"

Pope Leo XIV , who became the first sitting pontiff to vote in a U.S. election , said Friday he is "proud to be an American and to exercise my right" to vote.

The pope, formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost , "has exercised his right to vote as a United States citizen, whenever he was eligible to do so," the Holy See press office said in an Oct. 30 statement.

"The Holy Father expresses his belief in the right and the duty of citizens to participate in democratic processes," the Vatican said in a statement.