Mr President - again. Donald Trump has claimed victory and promises to return to the White House to deliver “the golden age of America”.
Trump, 78, declared himself the 47th President in a speech to party faithful at an event at West Palm Beach in Florida, flanked by wife Melania and son Barron.
“I will not rest until we have delivered the strong safe and prosperous America that we deserve. This will truly be the golden age of America.”
He also addressed the July assassination attempt that almost claimed his life, telling supporters: “God spared my life for a reason.”
Trump becomes just the second American to win another term after a gap of four years. The other person was Grover Cleveland in 1893.
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The former President was expected to take an early lead based on poll closing times in Republican-friendly states.
As CNN’s Chris Wallace explained: “All the states that Trump has won tonight are states that he won in 2020. All the states that Harris has won are states that Biden won in 2020. There has been no swing state that has been flipped yet.”
Trump had claimed earlier today that there had been “massive cheating” taking place in the presidential election, mere hours after saying he would only accept the result of the vote if it was “fair”.
Trump made the cheating allegation on his Truth Social account, claiming it had taken place in Philadelphia and that “law enforcement coming”.
The Republican candidate’s claim was swiftly rejected by Philadelphia’s district attorney, Larry Krasner, who said there was “no factual basis whatsoever” to Trump’s claim of irregularities.
Krasner said the former president has made a “wild assertion”.
As the first poll results begin to emerge, female turnout is set to be high, which could prove to be a boost for Democrat candidate Kamala Harris.
The first exit polls suggest women are accounting for some 53% of the vote, six points ahead of men, and one point up on the last election.
Earlier, US police and the military were bracing for widespread civil unrest after the presidential election today.
As fears grow that a long wait before a result could fuel violence on the streets, barriers have been erected around key sites in Washington, DC, including at the Capitol, the White House and Kamala Harris’ residence.
Authorities are anticipating major protests across the country later in the week, which could be exacerbated if some states do not report final results for days. In Washington, Oregon and Nevada, the National Guard has been placed on standby to deal with riots and civil unrest.
Some election offices in Detroit and Atlanta, the largest cities in the key swing states of Michigan and Georgia, have been placed behind bulletproof glass to protect staff from rioting, while a ballot-counting warehouse in Philadelphia has been surrounded by barbed wire.
Adrian Fonte, Arizona’s Secretary of State who is in charge of certifying the state’s results, has said he wears a bulletproof vest. In Maricopa County, which includes the state capital of Phoenix, officials are considering stationing snipers on rooftops.
Some election officials have been issued with panic buttons to press if they are placed in any danger while counting votes.
The presidential election remains too close to call, as Americans head to the polls today.
Most pollsters have their predictions for the seven swing states within the margin of statistical error, making it impossible to determine the result with any certainty.
In some states, almost half of votes have already been cast.
Analysis of early voting data suggests a late boost for Harris, the Democratic nominee, including from women and older voters in some swing states.
Donald Trump, who remains the frontrunner in the US betting markets and some poll models, has deployed dark rhetoric in his final rallies of the campaign and said he believes the election will be “stolen” by Democrats.
Some of Trump’s supporters, expecting a close result that could be called for Harris, have said they are willing to take action to challenge her victory. Members of the Proud Boys, a far-Right group involved in the January 6 riots, have suggested in Telegram groups that they plan to return to the streets if Trump loses.
A poem, posted in the group of an Ohio chapter of the Proud Boys that was reviewed by The Telegraph, calls for fellow members to “fight”.
“The time has come, citizens stand tall,” it reads. “This woke mentality it must fall!/Their evil ways have come to light/The American Proud Boy is here to fight!”
The precautions follow violence at the Capitol in January 2021, when Trump’s supporters protested against the certification of election results that showed Joe Biden had won the presidency. Several of the ringleaders, including members of the Proud Boys, have since been jailed.
Trump faces ongoing legal proceedings over his alleged encouragement of the rioters.
Any unrest is likely to be most severe in Washington, DC and in areas where the result is close and takes longer to certify.
In Pennsylvania, which is likely to be the most pivotal state in determining the overall result, certifying ballots could take several days because officials will not start counting postal votes until election day. The Republican National Committee has mobilised a team of “election integrity” officials and poll watchers that will feed back information from the states to the party’s headquarters as the results are counted.
Presidential elections are typically called by major news outlets within 48 hours of polls closing, but some counts and recounts have lasted as long as a month.
Kamala Harris was leading Donald Trump by 4% on the final day of the election campaign yesterday, according to new data.
The final PBS News/NPR/Marist national survey before the election puts Harris on 51% of the vote, compared with 47% for the former President.
The results of the poll suggest Harris’ efforts to reach across party lines may have paid off, as 8% of Republicans said they will vote for her — compared with 5% a month ago. Meanwhile, only 4% of Democrats said they will vote for Trump.
The survey also found the gender gap has narrowed significantly during the final days of the race. Previously, Trump led among male voters 57% to Harris’ 41%. He now leads 51% to 47%.
The poll of 1297 likely voters carried out between October 31 and November 2 represents a two-point boost for Harris since early October.
It comes after a separate poll by Research Co. found that Harris is outstripping Trump in the key swing state of Pennsylvania with 49% of the vote, one point ahead of Donald Trump on 48%.
More than 80 million voters have already cast ballots, and both candidates spent the campaign’s final hours yesterday doing everything they can to ensure their remaining supporters vote.
“It’s ours to lose,” Trump told supporters gathered in Raleigh, North Carolina.
“If we get everybody out and vote, there’s not a thing they can do.”
In Scranton, Pennsylvania, Harris urged several hundred volunteers to enjoy the moment as they headed out to knock on doors.
“We all have so much more in common than what separates us,” she said.
- Agencies
