‘He was the people’s pope’: US leaders pay tribute to Pope Francis

Pope's death was confirmed Monday morning and political and religious leaders are sharing expressions of mourning

• Pope Francis, groundbreaking Jesuit pontiff, dies aged 88
• Latest updates: tributes paid after Pope Francis dies

American politicians and religious leaders reacted to the news on Monday morning of the death of Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, with expressions of mourning and tributes to his life and achievements.

The pope's death was confirmed early Monday morning in an announcement read out by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo.