Democrat Kamala Harris urged unity in a concession speech at Howard University following her defeat to Republican Donald Trump. The election results prompted foreign leaders and President Joe Biden to congratulate Trump and left Democrats downtrodden after the former president scored victories in swing states.
Trump's victory was felt down ballot, with the GOP reclaiming control of the Senate by flipping seats in Montana, West Virginia and Ohio. In the House, Republicans and Democrats are still battling for the majority, with both party leaders exuding confidence.
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President Biden will address the nation Thursday at 11 a.m. EST. The remarks to the nation will be Biden’s first appearance on camera in the aftermath of Donald Trump’s decisive victory over Kamala Harris.
Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr spoke about the election ahead of a game against the Boston Celtics. In August, he coached the U.S. Olympics men’s team to a gold medal in Paris.
“Well, I believe in democracy, and I think the American people have spoken and voted for Trump, and I want him to do well the next four years. I want our country to do well.”
“It’s a complex world. We’ve got a lot of interesting stuff between wars abroad, a global economy that has shifted everything in terms of what it means for our citizens and their day-to-day lives,” he said. “I want what’s best for us. I hope Trump can deliver.”
A pair of closely-watched House races in Virginian have been decided, but with neither party gaining ground in a still tight race for House control.
Republican Rep. Jen Kiggans won reelection in the military-heavy southeast part of Virginia, while Democrat Eugene Vindman won a seat previously held by his party in the north of the state.
Vindman is filling the seat after Rep. Abigail Spanberger left Congress to run for governor.
Vindman and his twin brother, Alexander Vindman, played major roles in former President Donald Trump’s first impeachment.
Trump’s campaign says he has accepted President Biden’s invitation to meet at the White House to discuss the presidential transition. No date has been announced yet but Steven Cheung, Trump’s communications director, said it would “take place shortly.” Cheung said Trump “very much appreciated” Biden’s congratulatory call on Wednesday.
Biden, in a White House-issued statement, praised Harris as “a tremendous partner and public servant full of integrity, courage, and character.” It was Biden’s first public comment in the aftermath of Trump’s victory.
The president also noted that Harris entered the campaign under “extraordinary circumstances,” a nod to his dropping out of the race 108 days before Election Day amid growing pressure from within his party after his cataclysmic debate performance against Trump.
Biden added that Harris “stepped up and led a historic campaign that embodied what’s possible when guided by a strong moral compass and a clear vision for a nation that is more free, more just, and full of more opportunities for all Americans.”
American presidential elections are a moment when the nation holds up a mirror to look at itself. They are a reflection of values and dreams, of grievances and scores to be settled.
The results say much about a country's character, future and core beliefs. On Tuesday, America looked into that mirror and more voters saw former president Donald Trump, delivering him a far-reaching victory in the most contested states.
He won for many reasons. One of them was that a formidable number of Americans, from different angles, said the state of democracy was a prime concern.
Even as Trump prevailed, most voters said they were very or somewhat concerned that electing Trump would bring the U.S. closer to being an authoritarian country, where a single leader has unchecked power, according to the AP VoteCast survey. Still, 1 in 10 of those voters backed him anyway. Nearly 4 in 10 Trump voters said they wanted complete upheaval in how the country is run.
▶ Read more about Trump's plans for American democracy
Former Vice President Mike Pence congratulated Trump for winning a second term in office, writing yet another awkward chapter in the relationship between the president-elect and his former running mate.
"The American people have spoken and Karen and I send our sincere congratulations to President-Elect Donald Trump and his family on his election as 47th President of the United States," Pence wrote on behalf of him and his wife. The former vice president also congratulated Ohio Sen. JD Vance, who ran in place of Pence as Trump's running mate.
“We will continue to pray for all those in authority and urge every American to join us in praying for our incoming President, Vice President and elected officials at every level,” Pence concluded.
Pence's relationship with Trump fractured after the former vice president declined to follow the Republican president's wishes and went ahead with certifying the 2020 election. Trump did not hold back in his contempt for Pence, questioning his judgment and calling him "delusional" on the campaign trail. Pence, in turn, declined to endorse his one-time running mate.
For all the concerns about a tumultuous process that could leave Americans waiting for days to learn who its next president would be, news outlets instead experienced an election night that hewed close to tradition.
Fox News Channel declared Trump had reclaimed the presidency at 1:47 a.m. on Wednesday. Broadcast networks and The Associated Press had Trump on the precipice of returning to the presidency when he took the stage in Florida at 2:25 a.m. to declare victory.
Many journalists warned viewers that determining the winner could be a protracted process that could take several days like it had in 2020.
Yet from the first hints provided by exit poll results shortly after 5 p.m. EST, the election night story moved methodically in Trump’s direction.
▶ Read more about how the media covered election night
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a statement late Wednesday, saying that “we all pray for America’s success under the next administration,” but did not make mention of Trump by name.
Pelosi was seen as the architect of the Democratic party’s strategic shift from Joe Biden to Kamala Harris as top of their ticket over the summer. The California Democrat has been Trump’s biggest critic, saying previously that her goal is to ensure Trump never enters the White House again.
“The peaceful transfer of power is the cornerstone of our democracy,” Pelosi said. “After every election, we all have a responsibility to come together and find common ground.”
Melania Trump marked her husband’s win in the 2025 election by saying a “majority of Americans have entrusted us with this important responsibility.”
The former — and future — first lady was an infrequent figure on the campaign trail with the Republican candidate. Melania Trump attended but did not speak at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. She did appear at Donald Trump’s election party early on Wednesday morning.
“We will safeguard the heart of our republic – freedom,” Melania Trump wrote. “I anticipate the citizens of our nation rejoining in commitment to each other and rising above ideology for the sake of individual liberty, economic prosperity, and security.”
As Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was leaving after his running mate’s concession speech, a reporter asked him: “What’s next?”
“Minnesota,” he answered.
They’re called swing states for a reason.
On Tuesday, Trump led the Republican ticket to a sweeping national victory. He was on track to improve upon his 2020 vote performance in 48 states. This included bringing back into the fold the five states that had abandoned him for Democratic Joe Biden four years ago.
Six of the seven 2024 presidential battlegrounds that helped decide Tuesday’s election had all moved sharply away from Trump in 2020. They included Georgia and Arizona, which hadn’t supported a Democrat for president in more than 20 years, as well as North Carolina, which shifted sharply to the left but barely remained in Trump’s column in 2020.
Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin all supported Trump in 2016 after supporting Democratic presidential candidates for at least six consecutive elections but swung back toward Democrats in 2020.
This year, Trump significantly outperformed his 2020 showing in all battlegrounds and had either won or was leading in the vote in the count as of Wednesday afternoon.
Nevada maintained a 2.4 percentage-point advantage for the Democratic candidate in both 2016 and 2020. But Trump led by almost 5 percentage points on Wednesday, although the AP had not yet called the race.
In a statement issued Wednesday, former President Barack Obama, along with former first lady Michelle Obama, said the election’s result “is obviously not the outcome we had hoped for” but noted that “living in a democracy is about recognizing that our point of view won’t always win out, and being willing to accept the peaceful transfer of power.”
Congratulating Trump and Vance, the Obamas expressed pride for Harris and Walz, for both of whom they campaigned, calling them “two extraordinary public servants who ran a remarkable campaign.”
The Obamas cast forward with hope for a divided America, saying that the nation’s problems are solvable “only if we listen to each other, and only if we abide by the core constitutional principles and democratic norms that made this country great.”
Shortly after Harris’ concession speech, a series of Democratic lawmakers issued their first statements in response to the election results and promised to ensure a “peaceful” transition for the incoming Republican administration.
“As deeply, deeply disappointed as I am by the results of the election, make no mistake: my Democratic colleagues and I — unlike many Republicans after the 2020 election — will uphold the will of the American people, fulfill our constitutional duty and do our part to ensure a peaceful transfer of power,” Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois said in a statement.
Transition talks have not yet begun in earnest, according to a person with knowledge of the Trump campaign. Instead, the president-elect was busy taking calls from leaders, domestic and international, donors and key supporters. Transition discussions are expected to ramp up later in the week, as attention turns to naming an inaugural committee and formal transition team. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders did not mince words in a scathing statement Wednesday.
“It should come as no great surprise that a Democratic Party which has abandoned working class people would find that the working class has abandoned them,” Sanders, Vermont’s senior senator, said.
“First, it was the white working class, and now it is Latino and Black workers as well,” Sanders said.
Sanders won reelection to a fourth term on Tuesday. He singled out wealth inequality, a slipping standard of living in the U.S., a lack of full health care guarantees and support for Israel’s recent military campaigns as problems Democrats need to focus on. Sanders’s 2016 presidential run was a key factor in pushing the dialogue in the Democratic party to the left. Sanders has built his political career outside -- and often criticizing -- the Democratic Party, but he caucuses with Democrats in the Senate.
“This is not a time to throw up our hands,” said Harris. “This is a time to roll up our sleeves.”
“Only when it is dark enough,” she said, “can you see the stars.”
Just as she walked in, Harris made her exit to the strains of Beyoncé’s “Freedom,” filing off the stage with her family.
Harris told supporters gathered at Howard University that she had lost her race against Trump, conceding to the Republican president who is now empowered by a sweeping mandate.
“The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for,” Harris said. “But hear me when I say, the light of America’s promise will always burn bright, as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.”
Harris had planned to address an audience like this at Howard on election night and had hoped she would have a more upbeat message to deliver. Instead, when Harris took the stage at her alma mater, she looked out at a sea of America flags and notably forlorn faces. She was flanked by 30 American flags.
The hype music ahead of Harris’ remarks has been an eclectic mix of rap and R&B, including a nod toward what Harris would have been — America’s second Black president.
Ahead of her walk on to Beyoncé’s “Freedom,” a mix included Jeezy’s “My President,” which includes the lyric, “My president is Black.”
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris’ running mate, drew cheers from Democrats when he arrived at the vice president’s concession speech.
He was joined by his wife, Gwen.
Beyoncé‘s “Freedom” became a mainstay of Harris’ presidential campaign, and some of the artist’s other music is providing the soundtrack of the event expected to include her concession speech.
“Run the World (Girls)” played through speakers at Howard University as supporters, members of Congress and other Democratic notables awaited the Democratic nominee.
Harris’ presidential campaign took on Beyoncé’s 2016 track “Freedom” as its anthem, with Harris walking out to it at dozens of events, including her acceptance speech at this summer’s Democratic National Convention.
The singer appeared with Harris last month during a campaign rally in her hometown of Houston, bringing a high level of star power to what had become a key theme of the Democratic nominee’s bid: freedom.
House Speaker emerita Nancy Pelosi, White House adviser Tom Perez and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser are among the crowd waiting for Harris to speak at Howard.
Voters in Missouri cleared the way to undo one of the nation’s most restrictive abortion bans in one of seven victories for abortion rights advocates, while Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota defeated similar constitutional amendments, leaving bans in place.
Abortion rights amendments also passed in Arizona, Colorado, Maryland and Montana. Nevada voters also approved an amendment, but they’ll need to pass it again it 2026 for it to take effect. Another that bans discrimination on the basis of “pregnancy outcomes” prevailed in New York.
The results came in the same election where Trump won the presidency. Among his inconsistent positions on abortion has been an insistence that it's an issue best left to the states. Still, the president can have a major impact on abortion policy through executive action.
▶ Read more about the national abortion landscape
Harris has left the vice president’s residence and is traveling to Howard University, her alma mater, to publicly concede the election to President-elect Trump.
Harris has already spoken to Trump by telephone to congratulate him on winning, according to one of the VP’s aides. Trump’s team has confirmed the conversation.
Second gentleman Doug Emhoff will join Harris at Howard.
The former president and now president-elect often skipped over details but through more than a year of policy pronouncements and written statements outlined a wide-ranging agenda that blends traditional conservative approaches to taxes, regulation and cultural issues with a more populist bent on trade and a shift in America’s international role.
Trump’s agenda also would scale back federal government efforts on civil rights and expand presidential powers.
▶ Read more about Trump's proposed policy plans
Belarus’ authoritarian leader President Alexander Lukashenko has congratulated Donald Trump on winning the U.S. presidential election, despite tensions between the countries.
“You did it first and foremost in the name of America and its citizens. I wish you good health, well-aimed political decisions that will make America great again,” Lukashenko said in a statement.
Since protests against alleged fraud in the 2020 elections that gave Lukashenko a sixth term in office, he has led a harsh and extensive crackdown on opposition. The Trump administration adopted two packages of sanctions against Belarus for the falsification of its own 2020 elections and violence against protesters.
Jordan’s King Abdullah II is urging Trump to boost international efforts to protect regional and global stability.
The Jordanian Royal Court posted on X that the king called Trump to congratulate him on winning the presidential election.
He noted in the call that the United States plays a pivotal role in maintaining stability in the Mideast and world, the royal court said.
Special counsel Jack Smith is evaluating how to wind down the two federal cases against Trump before he takes office in light of longstanding Justice Department policy that says sitting presidents cannot be prosecuted, a person familiar with the matter said Wednesday.
Smith charged Trump last year with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and illegally hoarding classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. But Trump's election defeat of Kamala Harris means that the Justice Department believes he can no longer face prosecution in accordance with decades-old department legal opinions meant to shield presidents from criminal charges while in office.
▶ Read more about the special counsel's decision.
David Plouffe, the longtime adviser to former President Barack Obama turned top Harris aide, wrote Wednesday that the Democratic operation “left it all on the field for their county” but eventually it was not enough against Trump.
"We dug out of a deep hole but not enough," Plouffe wrote. "A devastating loss. Thanks for being in the arena, all of you."
Plouffe’s comments come at a time when some Democrats are starting to blame President Biden for not stepping away earlier, constraining Harris to a truncated campaign.
President Joe Biden has called President-elect Trump to congratulate him on his election victory and to invite him to the White House to discuss the transition.
The White House said staff would coordinate a date “in the near future.” Biden plans to address the nation on the election results, which will have sharp implications for his legacy on Thursday. Biden also spoke with Vice President Harris to congratulate her on her campaign.
Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers had campaigned for Kamala Harris and called Donald Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally “atrocious” during an Oct. 28 pregame availability. Rivers struck a conciliatory tone Wednesday while discussing the election results.
“I was disappointed in the results, you know, I really was,” Rivers said during a post practice media session. “This is the most involved I’ve ever been in an election. A lot of it was personal because I’ve known Kamala for over 15 years. I thought she would have been a terrific president. The problem is 65-million-plus disagreed with me, and now Donald Trump’s our president, and we’re going to have to support him. We want him to do the best job for the country, at the end of the day.”
President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi of Egypt has spoken with President-elect Donald Trump to congratulate him on his election, according to a statement from the Egyptian leader’s office.
El-Sissi has affirmed: “Egypt looks forward to completing the joint work with President Trump during his new term … in a way that benefits the Egyptian and American peoples and achieves stability, peace and development in the Middle East,” the statement said.
El-Sissi cultivated close ties with Trump during his previous term. He was the first foreign leader to congratulate Trump when he won 2016 elections.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres congratulated President-elect Donald Trump and said he stands ready “to work constructively with the incoming administration to address the dramatic challenges our world is facing.”
“I reaffirm my belief that the cooperation between the United States and the United Nations is an essential pillar of international relations,” the U.N. chief said in a statement.
Guterres also commended the American people “for their active participation in the democratic process.”
U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric, responding to questions from reporters on Wednesday, said during Trump’s previous administration four years ago, “the secretary-general had very good relations with the president.”
“The fact that they had different opinions about a number of issues was clear to all,” Dujarric said. “It did not stop the secretary-general from engaging with the United States government just as all previous secretary-generals have.”
Democrat Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s reelection win in Wisconsin won’t change who controls the Senate, but it does give Democrats just a little breathing room.
With a handful of Senate races still undecided, Republicans on Wednesday have been anticipating just how much they could grow their majority. The Senate’s filibuster rules prevent one party from passing most major pieces of legislation without at least 60 votes, so if Republicans gain more seats, it gives their conference more strength in cobbling together a filibuster-proof vote.
There are also a few Trump critics within the Republican conference who may be willing to vote against his nominees for Cabinet positions. Outgoing Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday morning declined to go into whether he would support confirmation for potential Trump Cabinet picks like Elon Musk and Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Democrat Nellie Pou won election to a U.S. House seat representing New Jersey on Wednesday. Pou won the seat vacated by longtime Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., who died earlier this year. She defeated Republican Billy Prempeh and two others. Pou is a longtime state legislator, serving in the Assembly from 1997 to 2011, then the state Senate from 2011 until now. The Associated Press declared Pou the winner at 1:47 p.m. EST.
House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries says the “House remains very much in play” as Democrats hold out hope for avoiding a sweep in Tuesday’s election.
He says the path to the majority now runs through close pick-up opportunities in Arizona, Oregon, Iowa and California.
“The party that will hold the majority in the House of Representatives in January 2025 has yet to be determined. We must count every vote,” Jeffries said.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin won reelection to a third term representing Wisconsin on Wednesday. She defeated Republican millionaire businessman Eric Hovde, who was making his second run for Senate, having previously lost in the 2012 Republican primary. Baldwin argued that Hovde was disconnected from Wisconsin, given that he owns a multimillion-dollar estate in California. She also hammered Hovde over his prior opposition to abortion rights. Baldwin was first elected to the Senate in 2012. The Associated Press declared Baldwin the winner at 1:42 p.m. EST.
Republicans had a big night in South Texas, flipping predominately Hispanic counties along the U.S.-Mexico border that have been a backdrop of President-elect Donald Trump's promises for tougher border measures.
Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz won reelection and Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar, who was indicted earlier this year, survived his most competitive race in a decades-long career. Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez also won reelection by a narrow margin.
The GOP has targeted South Texas to make headway among Latino voters since Democratic support began to erode in previous elections. The border districts made an even bigger rightward swing toward Trump this election compared to 2020. Hidalgo and Cameron, the two most populous border counties, flipped entirely to Trump.
The trends represent weakening Democratic support in a region formerly considered a stronghold for the party. De La Cruz ran on border security and immigration enforcement to appeal to the district’s predominately Latino and working-class population.
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