The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines on Sunday dismissed speculation about front-runners among cardinals expected to vote for Pope Francis’ successor, saying no clear top contenders have emerged.

In a radio interview on Sunday, 27 April, CBCP Spokesperson Fr. Jerome Secillano explained that any one of the 135 cardinals eligible to enter the conclave can serve as the next pope, as long as they receive two-thirds of the vote.

"In my opinion, I think the cardinals will gradually see who they should vote for during their general congregations. In there, there will be no campaigning, there are no frontrunners," Secillano said in Filipino.

"The idea that there is a frontrunner is done by the media, that's public perception. But in the end, it’s the opinion of the cardinal electors that will matter because they're the ones who will really decide who should be the next pope," he added.

Previously, Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David stressed that the election of the next pope is not a political contest but "a spiritual discernment."

David added that the conclave is "a sacred moment," guided by prayer, humility, and the "collective listening of the Church’s shepherds to God’s will," not by popularity or strategy.

He instead asked the faithful to pray for the conclave and the electors.

Cardinals below the age of 80 will gather for the conclave and vote for the next Catholic Church leader following Pope Francis' burial on Saturday, 26 April.

For the first time in Church history, three Filipino cardinals—David, Luis Antonio Tagle, and Jose F. Advincula—will join the conclave as cardinal-electors.

Pope Francis, 88, died of a stroke and heart failure on Easter Monday, 21 April, at his residence at Casa Santa Marta in the Vatican.

He was buried on Saturday, 26 April, at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major.