Donald Trump is America’s next president, defeats Kamala Harris

Donald Trump has won the US presidential election after securing the over 270 Electoral College (EC) votes required to emerge victorious.

As of the time of this report, Mr Trump has secured 279 EC votes, while his main challenger, incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris, secured 223 votes.

Mr Trump is also ahead in the popular vote count, securing over 71 million votes to Mrs Harris’s over 66 million.

This election is the first since 2004 that a Republican presidential candidate will secure more popular votes than a Democratic Party candidate, indicating Mr Trump’s solid performance and the sub-par performance of Mrs Harris.

“America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate,” Mr Trump told a jubilant crowd in Florida Wednesday morning.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Mr Trump had already won in four of the seven crucial Swing states – North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin – and was ahead in the remaining three – Michigan, Nevada, and Arizona – BBC reports.

Apart from winning the presidential election, the Republican Party also took control of the US Senate for the first time in four years and maintained its hold of the House.

Mrs Harris has yet to congratulate Mr Trump as of the time of this report, nor has she addressed her supporters.

However, several world leaders, including Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu, have congratulated Mr Trump for his victory.

According to President Tinubu, Mr Trump’s victory reflects the trust and confidence the American people have placed in his leadership, the president’s spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, wrote in a statement.

President Tinubu believes that, given President Trump’s experience as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021, his return to the White House as the 47th president will usher in an era of earnest, beneficial, and reciprocal economic and development partnerships between Africa and the United States, he added.

“Together, we can foster economic cooperation, promote peace, and address global challenges that affect our citizens,” the Nigerian leader was quoted as saying.

Many other leaders posted their congratulatory messages on X, the social media platform whose owner, Elon Musk, was one of the main campaigners for Mr Trump.

“Ready to work together as we did for four years. With your convictions and mine, with respect and ambition. For more peace and prosperity,” French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on X.

“For a long time, Germany and the U.S. have been working together successfully promoting prosperity and freedom on both sides of the Atlantic,” wrote German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on X. “We will continue to do so for the wellbeing of our citizens.”

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Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose country has relied on US support to withstand Russia’s invasion, also congratulated Mr Trump.

“I appreciate President Trump’s commitment to the ‘peace through strength’ approach in global affairs,” Mr Zelensky wrote.

“This is exactly the principle that can practically bring just peace in Ukraine closer. I am hopeful that we will put it into action together.”

Mr Trump is, however, expected to differ in support for Ukraine compared to the outgoing President Joe Biden. Mr Trump has vowed to end the war when he assumes office, and many believe he will halt weapons transfers to Ukraine and tell Mr Zelensky to negotiate with Russia.