With Roman Catholic cardinals set to begin their secret conclave to elect a new pope, the legacy left behind by Pope Francis, the first pope from Latin America, may be tightly guarded by the region's cardinals hoping to again install one of their own, experts told Reuters.

Argentine-born Pope Francis was the first pope from outside of Europe since the eighth century. His historic papacy helped re-invigorate the Church's standing in Latin America through his defense of migrants and support for the peace process in Colombia.

Latin American cardinals participating in the 133-member conclave, the majority of them appointees by Pope Francis himself, may throw their support behind another regional candidate in an effort to continue his legacy, as they have done in past conclaves.

Language is also another key factor in the conclave, said Francisco Javier Acero Perez, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Mexico. Cardinals tend to group together based on their native languages in Vatican events.

With a growing a delegation from Latin America, the conclave may see those cardinals stick together simply so they can communicate in Spanish or Portuguese, rather than Italian or English.

Still, the likelihood that the next pope is from Latin America may be slim, as there are only about 23 cardinals from the region participating in the conclave, short of the 90 votes needed for a veto.

Argentine Cardinal Angel Rossi, who is set to participate in the conclave, said that while he didn't think the next pope's nationality would be a defining voting factor, he believed the focus will be on a continuation of Francis' vision, including for the region.

(Production: Rodolfo Pena Roja, Alicia Fernandez, Horacio Soria, Alberto Fajardo, Nina Lopez, Anna Portella)