The Republican ticket, former president Donald Trump (78) and Ohio Senator JD Vance (40) have emerged victorious in the 2024 US presidential elections. President-elect Trump will return to the White House in January after securing wins in four of the seven swing states, with counting of votes still underway in the remaining three.
The Republicans have garnered 277 electoral college votes while Vice President Kamala Harris (60) and running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (60) trail behind at 224.
In his victory speech earlier in the day, Trump called his victory one that the “country has never seen before,” adding that he will not rest until “we have prosperous America, the environment that we deserve and you deserve”.
Stay tuned to ThePrint for latest updates on the US presidential election 2024.
US presidential election | UPDATES:
9:45 pm: Updates to this blog have ended.
7:30 pm: Brazil’s far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro said on the social platform X that Trump’s imminent return to the White House marked “the triumph of the people’s will over the arrogant designs of an elite who disdain our values, beliefs, and traditions.” He said Trump’s victory was historic and would empower right-wing and conservative movements across the globe, and he hoped it would inspire Brazil to “follow the same path.”
6:25 pm: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau congratulated Trump in a post on the social platform X and included a picture of the two of them in the White House during the President-elect’s first term.
Congratulations to Donald Trump on being elected President of the United States.
The friendship between Canada and the U.S. is the envy of the world. I know President Trump and I will work together to create more opportunity, prosperity, and security for both of our nations. pic.twitter.com/yEnL6gxyzO
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) November 6, 2024
6:00 pm: Futures markets in the US surged early Wednesday, with the Dow climbing 2.85% and the S&P 500 rising nearly 2%. Bitcoin, which many see as a winner under a Trump presidency, hit all-time highs above $75,000. Meanwhile, Tesla, the company run by Trump surrogate Elon Musk, spiked 12% before the opening bell while other electric vehicle makers slumped.
5:45 pm: The International Rescue Committee, a large humanitarian aid organisation, has urged the Trump administration to “continue America’s traditions of humanitarian leadership and care of the most vulnerable.”
5:00 pm: The Chinese policy towards the US will be “consistent”, foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters in Beijing.
“We will continue to view and handle China-U.S. relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful co-existence and win-win cooperation,” she added.
4:50 pm: While the world congratulates Trump on his victory and looks forward to working with the US, Iran says that the Republican victory makes no difference to Tehran. Although heightened sanctions on Iran can be expected under the Trump regime, government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani claimed that it won’t affect Iranian livelihoods.
4:40 pm: Although Donald Trump has been declared winner, voting is still underway in several counties, and final numbers are yet to be revealed. Ballot counting was delayed especially in Montana where about 200 people were still in line after midnight to cast their votes. Voting was also delayed in various areas owning to unconfirmed bomb threats hinting involvement of Russian elements, an allegation denied by Russia.
4:10 pm: Donald Trump wins Wisconsin, paving the way for his appointment as the 47th President of the United States. Trump holds 277 of the electoral college votes while Kamala Harris is at 224.
4.00 pm: All eyes are anticipating the final call in the US presidential elections as Donald Trump still stands at 267 electoral college votes. Meanwhile, Czech and German leaders hailed partnerships with the US.
3.00 pm: Several world leaders have congratulated Donald Trump for his expected win. French President Emmanuel Macron said he is “ready to work together” with Trump while the Ukrainian president appreciated “Trump’s commitment to the peace through strength approach in global affairs. European Commission president and NATO General Secretary both look forward to “working with Trump.
Israel’s Prime Minister Netanyahu called it “history’s greatest comeback!”.
Dear Donald and Melania Trump,
Congratulations on history’s greatest comeback!
Your historic return to the White House offers a new beginning for America and a powerful recommitment to the great alliance between Israel and America.
This is a huge victory!
In true friendship,… pic.twitter.com/B54NSo2BMA
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) November 6, 2024
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, too, congratulated Trump. “We look forward to an era of a strong United States of America under President Trump’s decisive leadership,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Congratulations to @realDonaldTrump on his impressive election victory!
I recall our great meeting with President Trump back in September, when we discussed in detail the Ukraine-U.S. strategic partnership, the Victory Plan, and ways to put an end to Russian aggression against…
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) November 6, 2024
2:00 pm: Prime Minister Modi congratulated Donald Trump as the Republican candidate inches closer towards victory.
“Heartiest congratulations my friend on your historic election victory. As you build on the successes of your previous term, I look forward to renewing our collaboration to further strengthen the India-US Comprehensive Global and Strategic Partnership. Together, let’s work for the betterment of our people and to promote global peace, stability and prosperity,” he wrote on X(formerly Twitter).
Heartiest congratulations my friend @realDonaldTrump on your historic election victory. As you build on the successes of your previous term, I look forward to renewing our collaboration to further strengthen the India-US Comprehensive Global and Strategic Partnership. Together,… pic.twitter.com/u5hKPeJ3SY
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 6, 2024
1:45 pm: “This is a movement like no one has ever seen before, this has been the greatest political movement. Of all time there hasn’t been anything like this,” Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump told supporters at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Florida, minutes after winning the swing state of Pennsylvania.
He added, “This is going to reach another level of importance because we are going to help our country heal. Our country needs help very badly, we are going to fix our borders and fix everything about our country.”
The 78-year-old also told supporters, “We made history tonight and the reason is just that we overcame obstacles that nobody thought were possible. This is a political victory that our country has never seen before.”
He assured supporters that he would fight for their future and family “with every breath and won’t rest until we have prosperous America, the environment that we deserve and you deserve”.
“This will truly be the golden age of America,” he said, adding that this “victory” would allow the Republicans to “make America great again”.
The former president addressed supporters at his campaign headquarters. Watch:
1:30 pm: Kamala Harris and running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz have been declared victorious in Minnesota. The Democrats are at 224 electoral votes while Trump-led Republicans are at 267.
1:15 pm: Republican Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, has congratulated Donald Trump, referring to him as President-elect. “There is hope and morning in America again! Donald Trump is now our President-elect, chosen by the American people for such a time as this,” Johnson wrote in a post on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter).
“With President Trump back in the White House, there is no obstacle too great and no challenge too difficult,” added Johnson.
There is hope and morning in America again! Donald Trump is now our President-elect, chosen by the American people for such a time as this. The citizens of our great country used their voices to decisively reject four more years of Harris’ open borders, high crime, increased cost…
— Mike Johnson (@MikeJohnson) November 6, 2024
Fox News is the only major network to have called the race for Trump, while others including Associated Press put him three electoral college votes short of the 270-mark, with Harris falling far behind.
1:00 pm: Donald Trump wins Pennslyvania. The 19 electoral votes from the state brings his number up to 267, just three short of the majority mark.
Trump was also declared winner in the 2nd Congressional District in Maine, adding one electoral vote to the Republican column.
Also read: A Donald Trump presidency threatens Indian economy. Just see his record
12:45 pm: Harris’ campaign co-chair, Cedric Richmond told gathered supporters at Howard University that the vice-president will not speak tonight however she has not given up yet.
“We still have votes to count. We still have states that have not been called yet. We will continue overnight to fight to make sure that every vote is counted, that every voice has spoken,” said Richmond.
12:30 pm: Kamala Harris wins New Hampshire. The state has voted in favour of the Democrats in seven of the last eight presidential elections.
Also read: ‘Kamala IS brat’, ‘Femininomenon’ – how Internet trends are boosting US Veep’s presidential campaign
12:15 pm: Polling in Nevada finally concluded, three hours behind the scheduled time. Voters stood in long lines to cast their vote and authorities boast about the high voter turnout in the swing state. Initial returns show Trump leading by three points.
Other swing states still in play include Arizona with 11 electoral votes, 15 in Michigan, Pennsylvania with 19, and Wisconsin with 10 votes.
12:00 pm: The Republicans cross halfway mark in the Senate, for the first time in four years. While the Democrats are at 42, Republicans have 51 seats in the chamber.
11:45 am: A shift in election demographics was noted, as Black and Latino voters appeared slightly less likely to support Harris as opposed to their support for Biden in the 2020 elections.
“About 8 in 10 Black voters backed Harris, down from the roughly 9 in 10 who backed Biden. More than half of Hispanic voters supported Harris, but that was down slightly from the roughly 6 in 10 who backed Biden in 2020,” APCast data suggests.
11.30 am: Trump wins the swing state of Georgia. This increases the electoral votes for Republicans 16. Georgia has voted red since 1996 barring the 2020 election when Joe Biden won the state by 11,779 votes.
Anticipating Trump’s victory, U.S. stock futures and the dollar prices saw slight surge in Asia.
11.10 am: Trump is still leading in five swing states, supporters gather at Palm Beach Convention Center where the Republican candidate is scheduled to speak.
10:45 am: Kamala Harris wins Hawaii’s four electoral votes. The state has voted in favour of a Democratic Party candidate for tenth consecutive time.
10:30 am: The issue of bomb threats is being investigated. Although sent from Russian domains, culprits might not necessarily be Russian, Jen Easterly, the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, told reporters.
10:15 am: Kamala Harris wins New Mexico, Oregon, and Virginia, adding 26 electoral votes to her tally.
10.00 am: Donald Trump wins Idaho, North Carolina as he moves closer to the halfway mark of 270. Harris is trailing with 179 electoral votes as Trump reaches 230.
Also read: Trump or Harris, why US presidential elections matter to India and the world
9.45 am: Harris wins advantage as she claims California’s 54 electoral votes. Washington once again goes the Democrat way awarding the vice-president with 12 electoral votes.
9.30 am: Kamala Harris wins 1st Congressional district in Maine. With just one-quarter of the votes counted, Trump is in the lead in Michigan—a state Joe Biden claimed for the Democrats in 2020. Six of the seven swing states, including central and northeastern Pennsylvania, are leaning towards Trump.
Polls will close soon in California, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.
9.15 am: After supporting Obama’s candidacy in two elections, Iowa went the Trump way in 2016. Trump once again claimed victory in Iowa alongside swing state Ohio and the six electoral votes of Kansas in the Tuesday election.
Also read: Harris, Trump in dead heat across swing states in Washington Post poll
9.00 am: Kamala Harris wins Colorado, and the District of Columbia. While DC has been a Democratic stronghold, Colorado was a purple state before it turned blue two decades ago.
8.45 am: Donald Trump wins Missouri. The seat, considered to be ‘reliably conservative’, voted 52.9% in favour of Trump, with Kamala Harris at 45.9% votes, Associated Press numbers suggest. Trump has also claimed Montana and Utah.
8.30 am: Voting was disrupted in multiple locations across the swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, Wisconsin, and Arizona. Two polling stations in Pennsylvania remained open till 10 pm ET due to the delay caused by these threats. CNN reported that state officials have reason to believe that the threats originated from Russian email addresses.
8.15 am: Even before polls opened, nearly 82 million Americans had already cast their ballots in early voting, the Associated Press reported. Compared with past data, trends show a break from the past with more Americans voting in advance. Read more here.
Another unique feature of the presidential election campaign this time was the use of surrogates by both Harris and Trump. From former US president Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama to billionaires Elon Musk, Bill Ackman, and pop star Taylor Swift, the campaign trail was unlike any Americans had seen. Read more here.
8 am: What is the electoral college, why swing states hold the key to victory and what about third party candidates? Here’s your guide to the US presidential election.
To know how absentee ballots work and how foreign nationals in India vote for the presidential election back home, read this report.
Also Read: What Trump-Harris result could mean for India in key areas, from geopolitics to trade & immigration
A good chunk of the votes Kamala received was more anti Trump than pro Harris. Was the moniker “word salad” deserved vis-a-vis Harris? Yes. Women aspiring for high office still hide their true selves; they fear exposure. This attitude was especially relevant to Harris as we had no real idea about what she stood for causing the independents to sway in the direction of Trump.
World leaders are not standing on formality. They know the great man loves a little flattery.