Trump claims ‘magnificent victory’ in US presidential election

Former US president and Republican candidate Donald Trump has claimed 'a magnificent victory' in the US presidential election, saying this is going to be the "golden age" of America.

Trump claimed victory and pledged to "heal" the country as results put him on the verge of beating Kamala Harris in a stunning White House comeback.

His exuberant speech came despite the fact that only Fox News had declared him the winner, with no other US networks having made the call so far.

Addressing a raucous crowd at his campaign headquarters in Florida after hectic election day on Wednesday, Trump said "This is a magnificent victory for the American people, that will allow us to make America great again."

Trump declared victory, although he has not yet achieved the official required electoral college votes. He told the crowd that he hopes, one day, they'll look back and consider this "one of the most important days of your life".

"America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate," he went on, referencing his party winning the Senate back from the Democratic Party.

Trump said: "We're going to help our country heal."

He vowed to fix the borders, adding that he and his party made history for a reason.

Trump also congratulated the man he said will be the next vice-president of the US: JD Vance.

Trump asked Vance - who the crowd are cheering for - to say a few words. Vance took the mic and described Trump's campaign as the "greatest political comeback ever".

Making light of the "heat" Trump said he took for choosing Vance a few months ago, Trump said Vance was the right choice.

Trump also thanked his wife Melania, calling her the First Lady. He praised her book, saying she has "the number one best seller in the country. She's done a great job." He said she "works very hard to help people".

He also thanks his "amazing children," naming each of them as they stand on stage with him.

As jubilant supporters cheered and chanted "USA", Trump took to the stage at his campaign headquarters in Florida along with 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."

US networks have called the swing states of Pennsylvania, Georgia and North Carolina for the 78-year-old, and he led the Democratic vice president in the others although they have not been called yet.

Gloom swiftly descended on Harris's camp. "You won't hear from the vice president tonight but you will hear from her tomorrow," Cedric Richmond, Harris campaign co-chair, told a watch party in Washington as supporters left.

In a further blow to Democrats, Trump's Republican Party also seized control of the Senate, flipping two seats to overturn a narrow Democratic majority.

A Trump victory threatens to cause shockwaves around the world, as US allies in Europe and Asia fear a return of his nationalist policies and his praise of autocrats like Russia's Vladimir Putin.

But the US dollar surged and bitcoin hit a record high while most equity markets advanced as traders bet on a victory for Trump as the results rolled in.

- Mood shift -

Polls for weeks had shown a knife-edge race between Harris and Trump, who would be the oldest ever president at the time of inauguration, the first felon president and only the second in history to serve non-consecutive terms.

Trump also faces sentencing in a criminal case over hush money payments on November 26, while the controversy over his denial of his 2020 election defeat by Joe Biden still persists.

But in the end victory came surprisingly quickly.

The mood shifted sharply at Harris's watch party in Howard University -- her former college and a historically Black university in Washington -- as the results came in.

"I am scared," said Charlyn Anderson. "I am anxious now. I am leaving, my legs can barely move."

In contrast, the celebrations intensified at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and the watch party nearby.

Tech tycoon Elon Musk, who has backed Trump and stands to lead a government efficiency commission under him, posted a picture of himself with the Republican.

"Game, set and match," Musk said on X, the social media network he owns along with the Tesla electric vehicle firm and the Space X company.

Millions of Americans had lined up throughout Election Day -- and millions more voted early -- in a race with momentous consequences for the United States and the world.

They were deciding whether to either hand a historic comeback to Trump or make Harris the first woman in the world's most powerful job.

In a stark reminder of the tension -- and fears of outright violence -- dozens of bomb threats were made against polling stations in Georgia and Pennsylvania.

The FBI said the threats appeared to originate in Russia, which is accused by Washington of trying to meddle in the election. The threats were all hoaxes but succeeded in disrupting proceedings.

- Dark rhetoric -

Harris, 60, had aiming to be only the second Black and first person of South Asian descent to be president.

She made a dramatic entrance into the race when Biden dropped out in July, while Trump -- twice impeached while president -- has since ridden out two assassination attempts and a criminal conviction.

She hammered home her message that Trump was a threat to democracy and her opposition to Trump-backed abortion bans.

Trump has vowed an unprecedented deportation campaign of millions of undocumented immigrants, in a campaign full of dark rhetoric.

The election is being watched closely around the world including in the war zones of Ukraine and the Middle East. Trump has indicated he will cut aid to Kyiv's battle against the Russian invasion.

- 'No faith in her' -

Florida, located in the southeastern United States, has become a spiritual home for Trump as he has faced a litany of legal woes in his native New York.

He maintains a residence in the Republican stronghold state at Mar-a-Lago which doubles as a members' club.

While some of those at the Palm Beach viewing party were openly nervous about the result of the election, with Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris locked in a dead heat in opinion polls, others were more bullish.

Rocco Talarico, 68, wore a "MAGA" cap and a leather vest inscribed with the words "Born to Ride" and "Donald Trump."

He said he was confident the Republican would win.

"We need that because our country right now has no borders, our crime is bad, our stock market is bad, our gas and food prices are high. Kamala (Harris) did nothing for four years," he said.

Mike McCormack, 50, was even more strident in his criticism of Harris as he awaited a chance to hear Trump speak amid what might be one of the most consequential US election nights in recent history.

"I don't feel Donald Trump could be outside influenced as much, and I strongly feel that Harris is actually owned and manipulated. I have no faith in her," he told AFP.

He also raised doubts about the integrity of the polls, something that Trump has repeatedly raised without evidence, pointing to a conspiracy by his adversaries to deny him the presidency.

"I have some confidence in this election (but) not a whole lot," said McCormack. "There has been some funny things going on. There have been people arrested and convicted for voter fraud. So I don't know."

Earlier, Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican former president Donald Trump are battling it out for the White House, with polls gradually closing across the United States Tuesday and a long night of waiting for results expected.

Projections are tumbling in, with US media calling wins for Trump so far in 22 states including big prizes Texas and Ohio, and other reliably Republican-leaning states.

Harris has so far captured 10 states including big electoral vote prizes California and New York -- as well as the US capital Washington.

So far, that gives Trump 246 electoral votes and Harris 226.

Out of 538 electoral votes, the magic number to win the presidency is 270. Observers expect the hotly contested race for the White House to come down to a handful of key battleground states.

The following is a list of the states won by each candidate and the corresponding number of electoral votes, based on the projections of US media including CNN, Fox News, MSNBC/NBC News, ABC and CBS.

- HARRIS -

California (54)

Colorado (10)

Delaware (3)

District of Columbia (3)

Illinois (19)

Maryland (10)

Massachusetts (11)

New York (28)

Oregon (8)

Rhode Island (4)

Vermont (3)

- TRUMP -

Alabama (9)

Arkansas (6)

Florida (30)

Idaho (4)

Indiana (11)

Iowa (6)

Kansas (6)

Kentucky (8)

Louisiana (8)

Mississippi (6)

Missouri (10)

Montana (4)

North Dakota (3)

Ohio (17)

Oklahoma (7)

South Carolina (9)

South Dakota (3)

Tennessee (11)

Texas (40)

Utah (6)

West Virginia (4)

Wyoming (3)

Mood darkens at Democratic parties

The mood at US election watch parties shifted significantly as results began to show a swing towards Donald Trump in a number of key states early Wednesday.

With networks calling North Carolina and Georgia -- two of seven swing states -- for the Republican candidate, Kamala Harris's path to victory appeared to be narrowing.

"I am scared, I am anxious now," Charlyn Anderson told AFP as she left Harris's election night HQ at Howard University in Washington.

"We won't give up until it's done but I'm scared."

Others expressed bafflement, as news filtered in that Harris would not address the crowd during the night.

"He's a terrible candidate, so it just doesn't make sense," said Ken Brown, a former student, of Trump's successes so far.

"I don't know who's voting for him."

In Pennsylvania, perhaps the most significant of all the swing states, Democrats at a watch party in the western county of Erie were despondent.

"I'm just pissed off," said Lynn Johnson, 65, as she watched cable news channels.

"It doesn't look good for Harris.

"It's going to be dangerous if he wins. I don't feel safe."

What started as a raucous watch party at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, with balloons and beer, sobered up around midnight.

Organizers switched off TV screens and asked people to exit the ballroom.

While insisting "it's not over yet", one of them offered a piece of parting advice: Don't turn on your television tonight.

In Las Vegas, Democrat Pablo Pleitez said he was worried for his fellow Latinos.

"So far we are losing... many of the Latino community that are good people... they won't have anyone, they will be affected with Trump's decisions," he said.

 Trump wins swing states

Donald Trump pushed closer to victory over Kamala Harris on Wednesday, leaving the Democrat the narrowest of remaining paths to stop him scoring a stunning political comeback in America's brutally tense presidential election.

Trump's Republican Party also seized control of the Senate, flipping two seats to overturn a narrow Democratic majority.

The Republican former president, 78, won North Carolina and then the second swing state of Georgia, confirming his growing momentum as he targets a return to power that would send shockwaves around the world.

Democratic vice president Harris appeared to be underperforming in key areas compared to Trump as partial vote counts came in.

Her campaign said she would hold off from speaking to supporters at a watch party in Washington, DC, as had been expected earlier.

Harris's camp said the race was now "razor-thin" and that her "clearest path" to victory was through the so-called Blue Wall swing states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Her campaign director Jen O'Malley Dillon insisted in an email to campaign staff, obtained by AFP, that "we feel good about what we're seeing" in the Blue Wall.

Trump spokesman Jason Miller said the mood in the Republican's camp in Florida was "positive."

The US dollar surged and bitcoin hit a record high while most equity markets advanced as traders bet on a victory for Trump as the results rolled in.

Trump's early wins included the reliably Republican Florida and Texas while Harris won California, giving Trump 243 electoral votes and Harris 194. The magic number to win the presidency is 270.

- Mood shift -

The mood shifted sharply at Harris's watch party in Howard University in Washington -- her former college and a historically Black university -- as the results came in.

Excitement faded and people began to leave, while others stared intently at screens showing the news.

"I am scared," said Charlyn Anderson, who was leaving Howard. "I am anxious now. I am leaving, my legs can barely move."

In contrast, the atmosphere at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and the watch party his campaign was holding in Palm Beach was increasingly celebratory.

Tech tycoon Elon Musk, who has backed Trump, posted a picture of himself with the Republican at Mar-a-Lago.

"Game, set and match," Musk said on X, the social media network he owns.

Millions of Americans had lined up throughout Election Day -- and millions more voted early -- in a race with momentous consequences for the United States and the world.

They were deciding whether to either hand a historic comeback to Trump and his right-wing "America First" agenda or make Harris the first woman in the world's most powerful job.

In a stark reminder of the tension -- and fears of outright violence -- dozens of bomb threats were made against polling stations in Georgia and the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania.

The FBI said the threats appeared to originate in Russia, which is accused by Washington of trying to meddle in the election. The threats were all hoaxes but succeeded in disrupting proceedings.

- Oldest president in history -

Earlier, Trump -- who has still refused to accept his 2020 election loss, after which his supporters attacked the US Capitol -- added as the first results came in that "we're going to have a big victory tonight."

Polls for weeks had shown a knife-edge race between Harris and Trump, who would be the oldest ever president at the time of inauguration, the first felon president, and only the second in history to serve non-consecutive terms.

Harris, 60, is aiming to be only the second Black and first person of South Asian descent to be president.

She made a dramatic entrance into the race when Biden dropped out in July, while Trump -- twice impeached while president -- has since ridden out two assassination attempts and a criminal conviction.

Trump has vowed an unprecedented deportation campaign of millions of undocumented immigrants, in a campaign full of dark rhetoric.

Harris has hammered home her opposition to Trump-backed abortion bans -- a vote-winning position with women.

The election is being watched closely around the world including in the war zones of Ukraine and the Middle East, anxious to see how the next Oval Office occupant deals with the conflicts.