Kamala Harris of the Democrat party has 74,469,902 votes (48.3%)
Donald Trump of the Republican party has 76,972,156 votes (49.9%)
Donald Trump will make a historic return to the White House after winning the 2024 US election
In a stunning comeback from his loss to Joe Biden in 2020, the Republican carved out a decisive victory with wins in crucial swing states
"America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate,” Trump, 78, told cheering supporters in Florida as he hailed a “magnificent victory”
Defeated Democrat Kamala Harris vowed to ensure a "peaceful transfer of power", telling her supporters: "I know many people feel like we are entering a dark time ... I hope that is not the case”
Republicans also retake control of the US Senate and lead the contest to control the House of Representatives - but a final result could still be days away
Look back at the moment Trump declared victory and was projected winner - and see how America voted in maps and charts
Our live coverage of the US election continues here
Before her speech later today, Kamala Harris is expected to call Donald Trump, according to US media reports that cited officials close to Harris.
During the call, she will concede the election, several news sites say.
Sam Cabral
Reporting from Washington DC
Image source, Getty ImagesIn his first four years in office, Donald Trump was able to appoint not one, not two, but three new judges to the US Supreme Court - cementing its shift to a conservative majority.
That conservative lean on the nation's top court has had a tremendous effect on the country, from the earth-shattering overturn of abortion rights in 2022 to the loosening of environmental restrictions and gun laws.
His successor, Joe Biden, appointed one new jurist, replacing one liberal-leaning member with another.
But Trump's return now creates the possibility that he could further shape the Supreme Court bench - perhaps by replacing conservative Justices Clarence Thomas, 76, or Samuel Alito, 74, with somebody younger, or by adding a conservative to the court if a liberal justice - such as Sonia Sotomayor, 70 - retires.
As we've been reporting, Republicans have taken the Senate back from Democrats and the House is still up for grabs.
For our UK readers still with us, it’s time for another round of US political jargon explained.
For context: Power is split into three different branches of government – the executive (the president and their cabinet), the judiciary (the Supreme Court) and the chambers of the United States Congress.
Image source, ReutersRepublican senator leader Mitch McConnell says it is a "happy day" for the Republican Party and commends the Trump campaign for "running a sharper operation this time".
"It was a hell of a good day," he adds.
He tells reporters that in the election, "candidate quality is essential" and he thinks that "we had the best candidate everywhere yesterday".
McConnell says it was like a "referendum on the current administration" as people were "not happy" with it.
He is currently the minority leader in the Senate, but says he thinks that "we certainly already know that we're gonna be in the majority".
McConnell is stepping down from his role as his party leader in the Senate in January, but says he will continue to focus on America's defence and "do everything I can to help the new administration be successful".
Sam Cabral
Reporting from Washington DC
Image source, Getty ImagesThe last time Donald Trump entered the White House, Republicans held majorities in both chambers of Congress - the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Such unified control is rare. Before 2016, it was last achieved in 2005.
And with that Republican trifecta, Trump signed into law major tax cuts and a series of deregulatory policies, as well as making an unsuccessful effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act or "Obamacare", which provides government-funded health insurance.
Democrats retook the House in 2018 and the Senate in 2020 as voters rebuked Trump's first term. They used that leverage to block much of his agenda on issues like immigration and to launch probes - including two impeachment trials - over his conduct in office.
But now, as Trump gears up for a return to power, Republicans have secured a majority of at least two seats in the Senate and, with millions of votes remaining to be counted, still have a shot at winning the House too.
Democrats will be hoping they eke out a House majority to subvert what they worry will be an unrestrained executive branch.
Sam Cabral
Reporting from Washington DC
Donald Trump has won a second term, but plenty of other races down the ballot have yet to be called.
Republicans have won the Senate, but we still do not know how big their majority will ultimately be. Senate races in five swing states - Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin - are yet to be called, with the Democratic candidates in each of those races hoping to keep these seats in their party's column.
Control of the House of Representatives is also still up for grabs and dozens of races remain uncalled. This includes competitive House races in nine California districts, as well as two districts each in Arizona, New York, Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Washington state.
Democrats only need to flip a net tally of four seats to win back a House majority, but last night's devastating results may have them feeling a little nervous.
But some of these races may not be resolved for several days, especially the tight contests in California, so sit tight.
By Robert Cuffe
Donald Trump winning the popular vote by a few points was a surprise for pollsters.
Meanwhile, polling in the battleground states were closer but still consistently erred in the Democrats’ favour.
The final polls suggested four of the seven states might break for Trump by wafer thin margins.
The average polling error seen in swing states is not actually that big. But in tight campaigns, small changes can make a big difference.
Most of the final opinion poll averages shown below were less than three points from the actual results.
For instance, rather than winning Wisconsin by less than a point, Kamala Harris lost it by that less than a point.
And, all the polling "errors" mainly broke one way.
Nearly all (80 of 87) of the polls conducted in the last fortnight of the campaign underestimated Trump's leads in the battleground states in which a winner has been projected - Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia and Wisconsin.
Katty Kay
US special correspondent
There’s a strong feeling among Democratic strategists I’m speaking to today that the first female president of the United States will likely be a Republican.
The Democratic Party has now nominated two women and they both failed to win the White House - that is likely to make the party wary of nominating another woman anytime soon. It may be unfair, but women in positions of leadership who fall short often suffer severe consequences, both for themselves and those who want to follow them.
I'm struck today how many Democratic women believe Harris suffered because she is a woman.
It's not something the campaign is talking about publicly because they don't want to sound like they're making excuses. But Democratic women I've spoken to believe there were groups of voters, more conservative men in particular, who just couldn't envisage a woman as the US commander-in-chief.
As we reported earlier, Kamala Harris is set to deliver remarks today at Howard University, Washington DC, following her defeat in the US election.
She will speak at 16:00 EST (21:00 GMT), her campaign has now confirmed.
Second Gentleman Douglass Emhoff will also attend.
Before that, they say she will receive briefings and conduct internal staff meetings, which are closed to the press.
Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who plans to step down from his leadership role, warned that the election comes at the "most dangerous time since World War Two".
McConnell often sparred with Trump, particularly on foreign policy and national security issues.
'Most dangerous time since just before World War Two' - Mitch McConnell
Jonathan Beale
Defence correspondent
A second Trump term could once again shake the very foundations of Nato.
Trump's focus on America First and the threat posed by China will likely strain the transatlantic alliance.
So could his desire to end the war in Ukraine quickly. There's little appetite among Trump supporters to continue military support to Ukraine.
Nato, which operates by consensus, could be split over continuing to supply Ukraine with weapons. Europe’s defence industry could not fill the void left by the world’s most powerful arsenal.
The omens are not good. During the campaign Trump said Russia could do "whatever the hell they want" with allies who did not spend enough on defence.
That sentiment completely undermines the raison d’etre of Nato - collective defence. Nato head Mark Rutte, who some have called the Trump whisperer, will need to use all his skills of flattery to keep the alliance together.
Jonathan Beale
Defence correspondent
There’s plenty of concern about a Donald Trump victory among many Nato allies.
In his last term as president, he threatened to pull out of the alliance - accusing European allies of not spending enough on defence. It’s been a familiar refrain from several US presidents frustrated that so many allies expect to guarantee their own security at America's expense.
The difference? Trump seemed willing to pull the plug.
Catastrophe was avoided at a Nato summit in 2018 when Nato allies appeared to heed the warning. The then-Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte helped save the day then by giving Trump the credit for persuading allies to spend more.
Now as the head of Nato, Rutte has once again been quick to give Trump praise for reversing the decline in European military spending. That's one of the reasons why Rutte, was chosen for the job. The hope is that Rutte can help avoid a repeat of 2018.
Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder, has joined many in congratulating Donald Trump for his win in the election, calling it an "extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory".
"No nation has bigger opportunities," he wrote in a post on X.
Bezos owns the Washington Post, which has traditionally endorsed a candidate during presidential elections. This year Bezos put a stop to that tradition, in a decision announced days before the election.
He wrote that the endorsement creates the "perception of bias".
The election result today is one for the history books, but there's a few historic firsts that are worth noting:
Image source, ReutersDonald Trump, now 78, will be the oldest US president at time of election, in history.
In contrast, his right-hand man, JD Vance, at 40, will be the third youngest vice-president.
In recent years, the junior senator from Ohio has been one of Trump's most vehement defenders on Capitol Hill and in the media.
However, the two didn't always agree.
Vance was once a self-proclaimed "never-Trumper".
"My god, what an idiot" and "I find him reprehensible" are two Vance quotes from 2016 that resurfaced in July when Trump was narrowing his search for a running mate.
But Vance always identified with Trump’s disdain for elites and, ultimately, became one of his most steadfast allies when he ran for the US Senate in Ohio a few years later.
Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from Pennsylvania
Image source, Getty ImagesWe're still digging into the results, but initial data shows that a significant rightward shift from Latino voters - who make up about 12% of the electorate - helped propel Donald Trump to victory.
Early data suggests that Trump took 45% of the Latino vote this year, compared to 53% for Kamala Harris.
By comparison, Trump won 32% of the vote compared to Joe Biden's 65% in 2020.
Ahead of the election, polls suggested that the economy was a primary concern for many Latino voters - particularly inflation. We heard that repeatedly from Latino voters in swing states like Pennsylvania and Nevada.
Many Latinos voters also told me that they resonated deeply with Trump's message of a stronger border and tighter immigration restrictions - even among those who were immigrants, or the children or grandchildren of immigrants.
"I understand what [migrants] are leaving. But you have to do it the right way. I did it the right way," a Venezuelan-American named Daniel Campos told me in Allentown, Pennsylvania - a majority-Latino city.
"Things have to be done legally. Many of us were worried that the borders were just open [under the Biden-Harris administration].
Ana Faguy
Reporting from Washington DC
In the midwestern state of Missouri, voters passed a number of ballot initiatives on Tuesday.
They voted to enshrine a woman's right to abortion in the state's constitution, overruling the state's near total abortion ban which went into place following the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v Wade.
Voters also backed a measure that would require the state to adopt a $15 minimum wage and paid sick leave requirements.
These policies are largely associated and supported by Democratic candidates and platforms, but Missouri is largely a Republican state that overwhelming backed Donald Trump in the past three elections.
Missouri is just one example of a trend we're seeing across the US in this and other recent elections - voters are backing policies in Republican states that aren't supported by the politicians they're putting in office.
Image source, Getty ImagesKamala Harris will be delivering a speech later at Howard University, her alma matter. She still hasn't commented on the election results.
Her campaign invited supporters to join Harris and running mate Tim Walz at the event in Washington DC.
The event is listed to run from 13:00 - 17:00 EST (18:00 - 22:00 GMT).
Kerry Allen
Chinese media analyst, BBC Monitoring
Donald Trump’s re-election as president is on everybody’s lips in China today. He appeared to be the preferred candidate in China, and people across the country often nickname him “Comrade Trump”.
On Chinese social media platform Weibo, one of the most liked comments is from a user saying: “There will be a lot of fun to watch over the next four years.”
Chinese media have given a lot of attention this week to how divisive a figure Trump is. Media attention in recent days has been centred on whether there will now be violence in the US, with broadcaster CCTV highlighting the increased police presence on the streets, particularly in swing states.
President Xi Jinping has not yet officially congratulated Trump. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said that once the election results have been fully declared and Trump is officially announced, China will "handle relevant matters according to convention".
Mao said China's policy towards the United States “is consistent, and we will continue to view and handle Sino-US relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation".
However, Chinese strategists expect more fiery rhetoric and potentially crippling tariffs from Trump, who has proposed ending China's most-favoured-nation trading status.
Tom Gerken
Technology reporter
Image source, Getty ImagesBitcoin has hit a new record high in the wake of Donald Trump’s victory, as traders bet he will come good on his pre-election promises to boost cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin – which is notoriously volatile - reached just over $75,000 (£58,000) on Wednesday morning, before falling back slightly.
As with many policy areas, Trump’s view on crypto has undergone significant changes over the years. Once he called it a scam - but more recently said he would help the US become the Bitcoin "capital of the world", and has even launched his own cryptocurrency platform.
Attention will now be focused upon the Securities and Exchange Commission, which is perceived by some to have been hostile to cryptocurrencies.
Trump has previously promised to remove Gary Gensler, the SEC's chair, "on day one" if elected – a move that would delight crypto enthusiasts, and doubtless push Bitcoin's price higher still.