Portrait of Pope Francis
Center-left · Faith leader · From history

Pope Francis

Pope, 2013 to 2025

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The first Latin American pope urged care for migrants, the poor and the environment and criticized unfettered capitalism and war, while keeping traditional Catholic doctrine. He died in April 2025.

Pope Francis sits in the left-libertarian part of the Caucus economy and liberty compass: leaning state-led and slightly libertarian. The clearest positions are strongly religious on religion, strongly peace-first on war and peace and strongly nature-first on environment.

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Where Pope Francis sits on ten dimensions

Each scale runs from one pole to the other, and the dot shows the overall tendency of this person's record and public life. These are simplified estimates and open to debate.

💰EconomyLeaning state-led
State-ledFree market
⚖️Liberty and authoritySlightly libertarian
LibertarianAuthoritarian
🎭CultureSlightly traditional
ProgressiveTraditional
🌍NationStrongly globalist
GlobalistNationalist
🌱EnvironmentStrongly nature-first
Growth-firstNature-first
🤖TechnologyLeaning tech-cautious
Tech-cautiousTech-optimist
🕊️War and peaceStrongly peace-first
Peace-firstStrength-first
🏛️InstitutionsStrongly institutional
Anti-establishmentInstitutional
🙏ReligionStrongly religious
SecularReligious
🛡️InterventionismLeaning non-interventionist
Non-interventionistInterventionist

People most like Pope Francis

Dalai Lama Tibetan spiritual leader99%Pope Leo XIV Pope and sovereign of Vatican City, 2025 to present97%Thích Nhất Hạnh Vietnamese Zen master and peace activist, 1926 to 202293%Desmond Tutu South African archbishop and anti-apartheid activist, 1931 to 202192%Mother Teresa Catholic nun and missionary, 1910 to 199792%Hilda Heine President of the Marshall Islands, 2016 to 2020 and 2024 to present88%Ashoka Mauryan Emperor of India, c. 268 to 232 BCE87%Óscar Romero Archbishop of San Salvador, 1917 to 198087%

People furthest from Pope Francis

Joseph Stalin Soviet leader, 1920s to 19532%Adolf Hitler Chancellor and Führer of Germany, 1933 to 19452%Mao Zedong Chairman of the Communist Party of China, 1943 to 19763%Ayn Rand Russian-American novelist and philosopher, 1905 to 19823%

Political views closest to Pope Francis

Christian leftDraws on Christian ethics for social justice, peace and care for the poor, including…91%PacifismRejects war as a political tool and favors nonviolent resistance and disarmament.82%Utopian socialismImagines planned model communities built on cooperation, an approach that predates…77%Deep ecologyGives nature value in itself and calls for a radical reduction of human impact.77%

Read more about Pope Francis

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Biographies of Pope FrancisBooks on christian left

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Percentages show how close two profiles are across all ten dimensions. Including a person here is for study and comparison, not approval. Portrait: Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service (Jeon Han), CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons; see all photo credits.