Will Trump declare himself Pope before the end of 2026

Resolution criteria This market resolves to YES if, on or before December 31, 2026, at 11:59 PM ET, Donald Trump publicly declares himself to be the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, or the head of the Roman Catholic Church. To qualify for a YES resolution: The declaration must be a literal or official public assertion made by Trump himself via an official speech, press release, on-the-record interview, or verified social media account. The declaration must be verified by direct audio/video evidence or reported by credible, mainstream news outlets. Exclusions: Merely sharing satirical, meme, or AI-generated imagery depicting himself in papal attire (similar to his May 2025 Truth Social post), or making clearly figurative/metaphorical remarks (e.g., calling himself "the pope of real estate"), will not qualify. The statement must be an explicit, literal claim to hold the papal office. If no such qualified public declaration is made by the deadline, this market resolves to NO. Background In May 2025, Donald Trump drew criticism from Roman Catholic leaders after posting an AI-generated image of himself dressed in papal vestments on Truth Social. In early 2026, tensions escalated further when Trump clashed publicly with the newly elected Pope Leo XIV (the first American-born pope) over U.S. foreign policy and a subsequent AI-generated image Trump shared depicting himself as Jesus Christ. This market tracks whether Trump will officially or literally claim the papal title before the end of 2026.