Final answer:
The 4th step in the election of a pope is the Acceptance by the Elected Cardinal. After accepting, the new pope chooses a papal name before any public announcement is made. The Golden Bull clarified emperor selection in the Holy Roman Empire by designating seven electors.
Step-by-step explanation:
The fourth step in the process for the election of a pope is Option 4: Acceptance by the Elected Cardinal. Once a cardinal receives the necessary two-thirds majority vote, he is asked if he accepts the papacy. If he accepts, he then chooses his papal name, and only after these steps are the ballots burned to produce white smoke, signaling a successful election to the public. The announcement of "Habemus Papam" ("We have a pope") follows, introducing the new Pope to the world.
In the context of church history, the simultaneous appointment of three popes in 1378 started the Western Schism, a divisive period in the Catholic Church. Regarding the Holy Roman Empire, the Golden Bull of 1356 clarified the process of selecting a new emperor by stating that a group of seven princes, known as electors, would have the authority to elect the Holy Roman Emperor.