Kamala Harris said she would “never give up the fight to make the world a better place” in her concession speech as Donald Trump branded his win as a “magnificent victory for the American people”.
The Republicans resoundingly won a series of toe-to-toe fights in swing states such as Pennsylvania which fell to Trump’s singular brand of populism.
The Republicans also won the popular vote in a storming victory despite late polls putting the contest as “too close to call”.
Trump has won 294 of the electoral college votes surpassing the figure of 270 required for victory. The president-elect will enter the White House with a majority in the Senate, a conservative-majority Supreme Court and likely the balance of seats in Congress too.
In a speech to her supporters and the nation at Howard University, Vice President Harris conceded defeat and said: “My heart is full today. Full of gratitude for the trust you have placed in me, full of love for our country and full of resolve.”
She went on to say that: “The light of America's promise will always burn bright as long as we never give up and as long as we keep fighting.”
She added: “I am so proud of the race we ran. It’s not the outcome we wanted but we have been intentional about building community, bringing people together from every walk of life. We all have so much more in common than what separates us.
“We must accept the results of this election I told him (Trump) we will help him and his team. We will engage in a peaceful transfer of power.
“I know many people fear we are entering a dark time, let us fill the sky with the light of a billion stars of faith, truth and service.
"In our nation, we owe loyalty not to a president or a party but to the Constitution of the United States and loyalty to our conscience and our God.
"My loyalty to all three is why I say, while I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fuelled this campaign."
In contrast to her speech to hundreds of disappointed campaigners, Trump celebrated his second term with pledges of using his power to transform the US.
He told supporters that “America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate”.
He said that he would not let his backers down and that it is “time to put the divisions of the past four years behind us”.
Addressing a campaign party in Florida in the early hours of Wednesday, Trump pledged to “fight” for “every citizen” and promised the “golden age of America”.
He added: “This is a magnificent victory for the American people that will allow us to make America great again.”
The president-elect has long complained about US tax dollars funding European security and has been highly critical about Nato members not spending enough.
He has also repeatedly claimed he would bring the war in Ukraine to an end, although he has not set out how he would achieve this.
World leaders moved to congratulate Trump including Emmanuel Macron and Volodomyr Zelensky.
Sir Keir Starmer said he would welcome a visit by Trump to Parliament, Downing Street has said, describing the president-elect as a “steadfast” supporter of the UK-US “special relationship”.
The Prime Minister congratulated the Republican politician on a “historic election victory” after American voters returned him to the White House on Wednesday.
Number 10, which is seeking to build bridges with Trump after his campaign filed a legal complaint about Labour activists backing rival Kamala Harris, said Sir Keir looked forward to speaking with him in “due course”.
Asked if the Prime Minister had spoken with the president-elect following Wednesday’s result, his official spokesman said: “Hopefully the president-elect is getting some well-deserved rest right now but the Prime Minister obviously looks forward to speaking to him in due course.
“He knows first-hand how busy the first couple of days are after winning an election.”
On whether Sir Keir would be open to Trump addressing Parliament, as new Opposition leader Kemi Badenoch proposed in her debut sparring match at Prime Minister’s Questions, Number 10 said matters relating to the House are “for the Speaker”.
However, his spokesman added: “I think questions for the House are for the Speaker, but clearly the Prime Minister would of course welcome a visit from President-elect Trump to the UK in the future.”
