Donald Trump declared victory Wednesday and pledged to “heal” the country, as results suggested he was on the cusp of defeating Kamala Harris in a surprising bid for the White House comeback. His speech came despite only Fox News declaring him the winner, with other networks yet to confirm the result.
Amid supporters’ cheers of “USA”, Trump appeared at his Florida campaign headquarters alongside his wife Melania and several of his children. “We are going to help our country heal,” the Republican former president said. “It’s a political victory that our country has never seen before.”
Several major US networks called key swing states Pennsylvania, Georgia, and North Carolina in Trump’s favour, and he held a lead over Harris in others still uncalled. Meanwhile, disappointment swept through Harris’s camp. Campaign co-chair Cedric Richmond told a watch party in Washington that she would address supporters the following day.
In a further setback for Democrats, Republicans secured control of the Senate by flipping two seats, breaking the slim Democratic majority.
Trump’s victory, if confirmed, would likely send shockwaves internationally, as allies in Europe and Asia brace for a potential revival of his nationalist policies and his connections with leaders like Russia’s Vladimir Putin. However, financial markets responded positively, with the US dollar surging, bitcoin hitting a record high, and stock markets advancing as results came in.
Polls had anticipated a close contest between Harris and Trump, who at 78 would be the oldest president at inauguration, the first with a criminal conviction, and only the second to serve non-consecutive terms. Trump faces sentencing on November 26 in a case related to hush money payments, with his denial of the 2020 election outcome still casting a shadow.
Millions of Americans turned out to vote, deciding between handing Trump a historic return or making Harris the first woman president. Harris, 60, had aimed to be the second Black and the first person of South Asian descent to hold the office. Entering the race after Joe Biden’s exit in July, she had focused on Trump’s threat to democracy and his support for abortion restrictions.
The election outcome is being closely watched globally, including in conflict areas like Ukraine and the Middle East. Trump has indicated plans to cut aid to Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s invasion, adding international weight to the historic election results.
