John Paul I

Karol Wojtyła elected Pope John Paul II on 16 October 1978, first non-Italian since 1522

Cardinals chose the 58-year-old metropolitan of Kraków on the eighth ballot after a conclave that opened on 14 October 1978. He took the name John Paul II and became the 264th pope, and he went on to lead the Church until his death in April 2005.