Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, a native of Chicago, has spent the bulk of his career outside the United States. Supporters say he represents a “dignified middle of the road.”

The Vatican said that Francis had stripped a convicted cardinal, Angelo Becciu, of his right to vote for the next pope. Cardinal Becciu maintains his innocence but said he would sit this one out.

Crucial meetings will be held this week in which contenders begin jockeying in earnest for the job of leading the Roman Catholic Church.

Timothy M. Dolan is one of 10 cardinals from the United States who will have a vote in the ritual that will determine the next pope.

Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina was my pick to be elected pope. I was wrong. It was 2005, and the Argentine cardinal, a South American Jesuit known for riding the bus, ticked many of the boxes that church experts told me needed to be …