US election 2024: Trump wins convincingly to become 47th president

Updated on Wednesday at 8:54am (CET)

Donald Trump will be the next US president after comfortably beating rival Kamala Harris in a stunning comeback.

In his victory speech in Florida just after it was confirmed that he won the state of Pennsylvania and was leading in Wisconsin and Michigan, Trump promised Americans he will deliver a “strong, safe and prosperous” America.

Stepping into the stage at Trump headquarters shortly after 3am US eastern time, Trump said the American people had given him “an unprecedented mandate”.

Harris has not yet conceded.

“We will fix our borders… I will be fighting for you and your future with all my breath,” he told cheering supporters. “This is a magnificent victory for the American people that will allow us to Make America Great Again.”

Trump’s victory is particularly significant since the Republicans are also on course to winning a majority in the Senate and keeping control of the House of Representatives.

Trump also won the popular vote, something he failed to do in 2016 when he was elected president.

READ ALSO: What a second Trump presidency means for the world

“It is great to win the popular vote; this was a great feeling of love,” he told supporters.

Trump thanked his “beautiful wife Melania”, calling her the first lady and applauding her for having “the number one selling book in the country”.

Among a long list of people he thanked, Trump mentioned billionaire Elon Musk and Robert Kennedy Jr, whom he described as the man who will fix healthcare.

There was very little reference to policy in his speech, with the only reference to foreign policy being a commitment “not to start wars”.

“This was a victory like no other. We are going to pay you back. We are going to turn it around… this will be remembered as the day the American people regained control of their country,” Trump said.

Trump’s path to victory became clear soon after it was confirmed that he won Georgia and North Carolina, two battleground states and was leading in five others.

The prize was Pennsylvania, which was a must-win for Harris. Pennsylvania was won by Biden in 2020 but in key urban areas where the strength of the Democratic vote lies, Harris underperformed the sitting president.

Trump is only the second US president in history to win a second non-consecutive term in office.

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