DONALD Trump has been all but elected as the 47th president of the United States, as called by Fox News.
Trump has resurrected a political career widely considered over following the January 6 riots to return to the Oval Office, and appears to be on the brink of securing a second term four years after he rejected and denounced the American vote in 2020.
Trump is due to appear shortly and address an upbeat crowd gathered at the Palm Beach Convention Center.
The former president took what appears to be an unassailable lead over the Democratic presidential nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris after winning Wisconsin, surpassing the 270 Electoral College votes he required to clinch the White House.
Trump jumped to an early lead on election night after clinching North Carolina, the first swing state to be called.
The moment those 16 delegates went to Trump, his election night watch party erupted in chants of “fight, fight, fight.”
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With victory all but guaranteed in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Georgia, and Arizona, Harris’ path to victory was on the brink of elimination.
Just before 1 am, a full-blown dance party erupted at Trump HQ when Georgia was also called for the GOP candidate.
Before 2 am, Fox News became the first major network to call the election for Trump.
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The jubilant scenes at Trump’s election party in Florida starkly contrasted to the Harris camp’s watch party, which appeared to go silent before midnight.
At Howard University, where Harris HQ was established, the CNN election night broadcast was turned off just before midnight.
High-energy music was reportedly blasted through the speakers in place of the gloomy-looking election projections.
But disappointed supporters were seen trickling out before several swing states were called one way or the other.
A guest on CNN said it felt “more like 2016 than 2020,” with the New York Times reporting the mood was “seriously downcast.”
Cedric Richmond, co-chair of the Harris-Walz campaign, gave a brief statement at the watch party just before 1 am ET, admitting the Vice President wouldn’t be speaking but would address a crowd on Wednesday.
It’s not yet clear when a concession speech will come from Harris.
PIVOTAL SWING STATES
Trump spent a good chunk of the later stages of his campaign in swing states like Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Wisconsin, and Michigan.
Most notably, he was holding a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13 when he was the target of an attempted assassination.
The Republican candidate survived a graze wound to the ear, but a man was killed and others were left critically injured due to the gunfire.
Still, Trump continued campaigning in and around the state, even returning to Butler in October.
Trump had a team rallying on his behalf in the final weeks of the campaign, focusing on those pivotal swing states.
Tulsi Gabbard and Sage Steele were among those rousing supporters in the final days before ballots were cast.
Trump himself appeared at rallies in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, and Michigan in the days leading up to the election – a move that clearly left an impact on voters.
‘PRESIDENT FOR ALL AMERICA’
Since departing Washington DC for his Mar-a-Lago beach club and resort in Palm Beach, Florida, in 2020, Trump has been the biggest critic of the Biden administration.
With the MAGA movement yearning for a second Trump term, the former president ran on the same policy focus that launched him into the presidency in 2016, placing immigration, inflation, and the wars in Gaza and Ukraine at the forefront.
“The discord and division in our society must be healed,” Trump said during his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in July.
“As Americans, we are bound together by a single fate and a shared destiny.
“Together, we will launch a new era of safety, prosperity, and freedom for citizens of every race, religion, color, and creed.
“I am running to be president for all of America, not half of America, because there is no victory in winning for half of America.”
In the weeks leading up to the November 5 election, Trump pivoted his media strategy and began operating outside political norms.
Trump shifted his campaign efforts by appearing on podcasts that cater to young men, generating millions of views and listeners.
The president-elect appeared on Joe Rogan’s enormously popular podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, Comedian Andrew Schulz’s Flagrant show, Logan Paul’s Impaulsive, and wrestling legend The Undertaker’s Six Feet Under podcast.
The strategy paid off, with Rogan even endorsing Trump late Monday evening just hours before polls opened.
However, his iron fist over the Republican Party and climb back to the presidency after his 2020 election defeat came at a terrifying and life-threatening cost.
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