Donald Trump defeats Kamala Harris to become 47th U.S. president

By Alvin Wu
Domestic Affairs
Donald Trump defeats Kamala Harris to become 47th U.S. president

President-elect Donald Trump addresses his supporters in a victory speech at his campaign headquarters in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Tuesday, Nov. 5. C-SPAN/Broadcast

WASHINGTON, Nov. 6 (ZFJ) — Former President Donald Trump has defeated Vice President Kamala Harris to become the 47th U.S. president.

The Associated Press called the race for Trump at 5:34 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 6, after he won Wisconsin’s 10 electoral votes, putting him at 277 electoral votes to Harris’ 224. He is also leading the popular vote by around 4.8 million votes.

The electoral vote count at 5:55 p.m. on Nov. 6 stands at 295-226.

Trump declared victory on election night before he was officially declared the winner. He addressed his supporters in a speech at his campaign headquarters in West Palm Beach, Florida.

“This was, I believe, the greatest political movement of all time, there’s never been anything like this in this country,” said Trump. “And now it’s going to reach a new level of importance because we’re going to help our country heal. We have a country that needs help and it needs help very badly. We’re gonna fix our borders, we’re gonna fix everything about our country.”

“We made history for a reason tonight and the reason is going to be just that we overcame obstacles that nobody thought possible, and it is now clear that we’ve achieved the most incredible political thing.”

Trump also referenced the assassination attempt on him at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13.

“Many people have told me that God spared my life for a reason,” Trump said. “And that reason was to save our country and to restore America to greatness. And now we are going to fulfill that mission together, we’re gonna fulfill that mission.”

Harris addressed her supporters in a concession speech delivered the day after at Howard University in Washington, D.C., in which she announced that she had called Trump to concede the election and congratulate him. She also committed to ensuring a peaceful transition of power to him.

“While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign,” said Harris. “The fight, the fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness, and the dignity of all people, a fight with the ideals at the heart of our nation, the ideals that reflect America at our best. That is a fight that I will never give up.”

With this win, Trump has become the second president to serve nonconsecutive terms (after Grover Cleveland), first convicted felon elected president, and, at 78, oldest person to be elected president.

Republicans have won a majority in the Senate. House elections are still being decided. The Supreme Court has a 6-3 conservative majority, with three of the current justices having been appointed by Trump.

The AP VoteCast survey, conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago, found that 39% of voters said that the economy was the top issue for them, followed by immigration (20%) and abortion (11%).

AP VoteCast graphic depicting the top issues of voters this election. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/Graphic AP VoteCast graphic depicting the top issues of voters this election. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/Graphic

A higher percentage of voters told AP VoteCast that they believed Trump could handle the economy and immigration better than Harris, while the opposite is true for abortion.

AP VoteCast graphic depicting the percentages of voters, by age group, and the candidate they believe is better able to tackle issues with the economy. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/Graphic AP VoteCast graphic depicting the percentages of voters, by age group, and the candidate they believe is better able to tackle issues with the economy. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS/Graphic

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