| Type: | Pope |
| Honorific-Prefix: | Pope-elect |
| Stephen | |
| Predecessor: | Zachary |
| Successor: | Stephen II (as Pope) Celestine II (as Pope-elect) |
| Cardinal: | 745 |
| Created Cardinal By: | Zachary |
| Birth Place: | Rome |
| Death Place: | Rome |
| Previous Post: | Cardinal-priest of San Crisogono (745–752) |
| Other: | Stephen |
Pope-elect Stephen (died 25 March 752) was a Roman priest selected in March 752 to succeed Pope Zachary. Because he died before he was consecrated, he is considered only a rather than a legitimate pope.
In 745, Stephen was made a cardinal-priest by Pope Zachary. His titular church was San Crisogono. Zachary died in mid-March 752. On 23 March, Stephen was selected to become the new pope. He died of a stroke only days later, before being consecrated as bishop of Rome.[1] [2]
According to the canon law of the time, a pope's pontificate started upon his consecration.[3] Later canon law considered that a man became pope the moment he accepted his election, and Pope-elect Stephen was then anachronistically called Pope Stephen II.[4] His name was removed from the list of popes in the Annuario Pontificio in 1961.[5]