Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina, now known as Pope Francis, has been elected as the next leader of the Catholic church.

The announcement was made Wednesday on the balcony of Saint Peter's Basilica.

As Melisa Raney reports, people say the pontiff could bring change.

Rome Police says about 150,000 people filled Saint Peter's Square for the announcement of the new pope.

The huge crowd later witnessed Pope Francis' first speech.

Rather than bless the crowd first, he asked them to pray for him.

"The fact that he began by saying before I bestow my blessing on you. I need your blessing on me. I think that symbolism spoke volumes about the kind of pope he wants to be," says John Allen, CNN Senior Vatican Analyst.

The 76-year-old was the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, making him he first pontiff from Latin America.

"I never thought Bergoglio. I didn't think of him but it is great that they chose him," said one female in the crowd.

"He's a very humble man. We are talking about a cardinal that still takes the bus and the subway to work every day," says Eduardo Mangairotti, a priest studying at Gregorian University in Rome.

Francis takes the helm of a Caholic church that has been rocked in recent years by sex abuse scandals and claims of corruption.

Issues that some belive Francis could turn around.

"People are crying for change in the Catholic church.I don't know if he's the one who is going to do it, but at least this represents a change. I think change is important to a lot of Catholics," says Carla-Lisa Caliga, a Boston resident.

"He's a passionate preacher, he's very committed to the social justice causes in our country and I'm pretty sure he will be also now that he has to address these kind of issues worldwide," says Mangairotti.

Vatican officials say it will take several days before there is an installation Mass for Pope Francis, because it will take time for world leaders to arrive.

White House officials say Vice President Biden will represent the U.S.