Story perspectives

Pope Appoints Luis Antonio Tagle as College Dean

By Drooid · Oct 9, 2026, 11:24 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

Pope Leo XIV approved Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle as dean of the College of Cardinals.
The approval followed the cardinal bishops’ vote on Oct. 8, 2026.
Tagle, 69, replaces 92-year-old Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who becomes dean emeritus.
Tagle received the suburbicarian title of Ostia and kept the see of Albano.
As dean, Tagle will preside over any future papal conclave and ask the pope-elect his name.

History

Historical Context

The dean of the College of Cardinals—an office dating to the 12th century and long held by Italian suburbicarian bishops—was reshaped by Pope Francis’s 2019 rule that limits the post to a renewable five-year term. When Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re stepped down on 9 October 2026, Pope Leo XIV named Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Pro-Prefect of Evangelization, as the first Asian dean, marking a clear shift toward global representation.

1 of 2

Story summary

Pope Leo XIV approved Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle as dean of the College of Cardinals.
The approval followed the cardinal bishops’ vote on Oct. 8, 2026.
Tagle, 69, replaces 92-year-old Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who becomes dean emeritus.
Tagle received the suburbicarian title of Ostia and kept the see of Albano.
As dean, Tagle will preside over any future papal conclave and ask the pope-elect his name.

1 / 2