Cardinal Tagle Becomes First Asian Dean of the College of Cardinals

Cardinal Luis Antonio G. Tagle, a Filipino prelate who heads the Vatican's evangelization office, was elected Dean of the College of Cardinals on October 8, 2026, according to Vatican News and the Catholic outlet The Pillar. Pope Leo XIV confirmed the result, and the appointment was announced by the Vatican on October 9.

Who takes over, and who is stepping down

Tagle, 69, is Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization and the former Archbishop of Manila. America Magazine reports he is the first Asian — and the first Filipino — to hold the deanship, an office the outlet traces back to the twelfth century.

He replaces Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, an Italian who had led the college since January 2020. Vatican News reports Re, 92, had been renewed for a second term in January 2025, but Pope Leo XIV accepted his resignation on October 8, after which Re became Dean Emeritus while keeping his existing title to the Suburbicarian Church of Sabina-Poggio Mirteto.

How the election worked

According to The Pillar, Tagle was elected by nine of the ten cardinal-bishops — the small, senior tier of the College of Cardinals — with Tagle himself abstaining as the candidate. Under reforms Pope Francis introduced in 2019, the dean no longer holds the post for life but serves a five-year term, renewable once.

The Pillar notes that, of the ten cardinal-bishops, only Tagle and Cardinal Pietro Parolin are currently under the age of 80 and therefore eligible to exercise conclave functions such as presiding over the election of a pope; four of the others are over 90.

The Pillar also reports that Pope Francis had previously held off on advancing Tagle to the deanship, a decision the outlet links to Francis's preference for positioning then-Cardinal Robert Prevost for the role instead. Prevost was elected pope two months later, taking the name Leo XIV.

What the dean of the College of Cardinals actually does

America Magazine describes the dean as 'first among equals' among cardinals, with no jurisdictional authority over the rest of the college. The position's practical duties center on the period between a pope's death or resignation and the election of a successor.

• Notifying the other cardinals of a pope's death or resignation
• Convoking the preparatory meetings ahead of a conclave
• Communicating with the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See
• Presiding over the pre-conclave assemblies and, if under age 80, the conclave itself
• Asking the newly elected pope whether he accepts election and what name he will take

Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, an Argentine, continues as subdean. America Magazine reports the Vatican made no announcement on the subdean role, while Vatican News states Sandri's position had already been renewed in February 2025.

Tagle and Re compared

Background

Tagle served as Bishop of Imus from 2001 to 2011 and then as Archbishop of Manila from 2011, according to America Magazine. Pope Francis put him in charge of the Vatican's evangelization efforts in 2019 and he previously headed the charity federation Caritas Internationalis. He took part in the 2025 conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV and placed the Fisherman's Ring on the new pope at his inauguration on May 18, 2025.

Re served under four popes — John Paul II, Benedict XVI, Francis and Leo XIV — according to Vatican News, which also reports he presided over Pope Francis's funeral Mass in April 2025 and the pre-conclave Mass in May 2025. America Magazine reports that, because of the 80-year age limit, Re could not preside over the conclave itself; neither outlet specifies who did.