WASHINGTON: Republican Donald Trump has become the second president in U.S. history, after Grover Cleveland, to win a non-consecutive second term and make a comeback to the White House.
Trump has secured 277 electoral votes, defeating Democratic nominee Harris, who secured 226 votes. Swing states played a decisive role in Trump’s historic victory.
In the swing state of Georgia, Donald Trump won 16 electoral votes, flipping the state’s results from 2020.
Kamala Harris, on other hand, won Washington’s 12 electoral votes. In the 2020 presidential election, President Joe Biden had obtained 58% of the vote to Trump’s less than 39%.
Kamala Harris has canceled her election speech. Cedric Richmond, a co-chair of Harris’s campaign, briefly addressed the crowd and said Harris would not speak. On the other hand, CNN reported that Trump will soon address his supporters at a campaign event.
Early Trends in Battleground States
Colorado: Vice President Kamala Harris has won 10 electoral votes in Colorado state.
The state last supported a Republican candidate in 2004, when it backed George W. Bush, but has since consistently favored Democratic nominees, with Joe Biden winning by a significant margin in 2020.
Texas: Trump holds a strong lead with 53.5% of the vote (3,890,132 votes), while Harris trails with 45.3% (3,287,696 votes). Texas’ 40 electoral votes are seen as a major factor, and Trump’s lead is expected to hold as more votes are counted.
New Hampshire: Harris is currently ahead with 54.5% of the vote (156,263 votes) compared to Trump’s 44.5% (127,639 votes). With 35% of the vote counted, Harris maintains a slim lead in this small swing state, which carries 4 electoral votes.
Virginia: A tight race is unfolding in Virginia, where Trump leads by a narrow margin with 49.8% (1,173,484 votes) over Harris, who has 48.5% (1,141,711 votes). With nearly half the votes counted, the state’s 13 electoral votes are still too close to call.
North Carolina: Trump is leading with 51.9% of the vote (1,228,448 votes), while Harris has 47.1% (1,115,048 votes). With 40% of the votes counted, Trump maintains a slight edge in this important battleground state, which has 16 electoral votes.
Georgia: Trump is ahead with 52.5% of the vote (1,928,393 votes) compared to Harris’ 46.9% (1,719,963 votes). With 68% of the votes counted, Trump’s lead in Georgia, which also has 16 electoral votes, is significant, though the final outcome will depend on the distribution of remaining votes.
As the election continues, both candidates are focused on securing the remaining states needed to reach the 270-electoral-vote threshold and claim victory.
US Senate Election Results
The Republicans have also recaptured the control of the Senate.
The Democrats, who were defending 23 of the 34 seats up for election this year to maintain their one-vote majority in the Senate’s 100-member upper chamber, lost two seats to Republicans. This flipped their 51-49 majority to a 51-43 minority in the Senate.
Republicans gained two Senate seats, with Trump-backed businessman Bernie Moreno defeating three-term Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown in Ohio, and Trump loyalist Jim Justice winning the seat once held by Joe Manchin in West Virginia.
House of Representatives
The Republicans are also leading in the House of Representatives elections. They have secured 188 of the 435 seats, while Democrats have claimed 163.
A majority in the lower house requires 218 seats, making this contest highly competitive.
The current results suggest the possibility of a divided Congress, as both parties vie for crucial seats across the nation.
