When does Trump become US president again?
BBC's Caitríona Perry explains what key moments will follow election night
- Published
Republican Donald Trump will be the next US president - after a decisive victory that will send him back to the White House.
His defeated opponent, Democrat Kamala Harris, urged her supporters to accept Trump's win, and insisted there must be a peaceful transfer of power.
He will be the first former president to return to office in more than 130 years, and - at 78 - the oldest man ever elected to the role.
When will the election results be confirmed?
Trump has already been congratulated by world leaders including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the UK's Keir Starmer, but the official presidential election results are not yet confirmed.
There had been fears that extremely close races in some of the key battleground "swing" states might have left the results uncertain.
But earlier-than-expected wins in North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, coupled with victories in solidly Republican states, meant Trump reached the magic 270 electoral votes needed to secure the presidency.
CBS, the BBC's broadcasting partner in the US, projected Donald Trump as the overall winner just after 05:30 EST (10:30 GMT) on 6 November, the day after the election.
However, it could still take days or even weeks for the detailed election results to be confirmed officially in every state.
Is Donald Trump now president?
No. Trump becomes the president-elect, and his running mate JD Vance becomes the vice-president elect.
Trump will be sworn in at the presidential inauguration on Monday, 20 January 2025, at which point he legally assumes the power and responsibilities of the presidency.
After winning the 2016 election. Trump was sworn in as president in January 2017 and served until 2021.
What happens between election day and the inauguration?
Once every valid vote has been included in the final results, a process known as the electoral college confirms the election result.
In each state a varying number of electoral college votes are up for grabs. It is securing these – and not the backing of voters themselves – that ultimately wins the presidency.
Generally, states award all of their electoral college votes to whoever wins the popular vote, and this is confirmed after meetings on 17 December.
The new US Congress then meets on 6 January to count the electoral college votes and confirm the new president. As the outgoing vice-president, Kamala Harris will preside over this process.
It was this meeting of Congress, to certify the election results, that Trump's supporters tried to stop, when they marched on the US Capitol in 2021 after Trump refused to concede defeat to Joe Biden.
Watch now on iPlayer
Trump supporters gathered outside the US Capitol building on 6 January 2021 to try and stop the certification of the election results
What do the incoming president and vice-president do now?
Trump and Vance will work with their transition team to organise the handover from President Biden’s outgoing administration.
They will identify their policy priorities, start vetting the candidates who will take up key roles in the new administration, and prepare to take over the functions of government.
At his victory rally, Trump hinted that the former Republican presidential candidate and vaccine sceptic Robert J Kennedy could be given a healthcare role.
Tech billionaire Elon Musk is also expected to feature in the new administration. Trump previously said he would ask Mr Musk to tackle government waste.
Trump and his team will also begin receiving classified national security briefings covering current threats and ongoing military operations.
The president-elect and vice-president-elect also receive mandatory protection from the US Secret Service.
Trump's team says he has accepted a traditional invitation from Biden to visit the White House to ensure a smooth transition between the administrations.
The outgoing president also typically attends the inauguration of the incoming president, although Trump chose to boycott the 2021 event.
Trump did, however, follow the tradition begun by Ronald Reagan of leaving a handwritten note in the Oval Office for his successor to read.
At the time, President Biden told reporters that his predecessor had left "a very generous letter”.
After the inauguration, the new president begins work immediately.
North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher makes sense of the race for the White House in his twice-weekly US Election Unspun newsletter. Readers in the UK can sign up here. Those outside the UK can sign up here.