'I'd like to be pope,' says Trump when asked about his choice for Pope Francis' successor

In a sarcastic comment, US President Donald Trump said he would like to succeed the head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, who passed away on April 21 at the age of 88.

When the President was asked about whom he wanted to see as the next Catholic pontiff, he responded, “I’d like to be pope. That would be my No 1 choice.”

According to Reuters, Trump had no preference, so he replied, “I must say, we have a cardinal that happens to be out of a place called New York who’s very good, so we’ll see what happens.”

Trump hinted at Cardinal Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York, but he was not shortlisted as the successor of Pope Francis. 

Read: President Trump faces criticism for 'dozing off' during Pope Francis' funeral

The list of potential candidates includes US-based Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Archbishop of Newark, New Jersey. Notably, the Catholic Church has never elected a pope from the United States.

Donald Trump and his wife, Melania, attended the funeral of the first Latin American pope in Rome. 

Despite their past criticisms of each other, particularly over the pope's stance on migrants, Trump paid his respects. With the pope's passing, 135 Catholic cardinals will gather for a secret conclave to elect a new pope, with no clear favourite emerging.