Donald Trump is set to become the next President of the United States after leading the Republican Party to a historic election victory.
With 51% of the popular vote, Trump has edged out the Democratic candidate, who has received 47.5%. Trump is also on track to secure more than 300 votes in the Electoral College—well above the 270 required to win—according to projections from the Associated Press, as of 8 PM IST on November 6.
This marks the first time since 2004 that Republicans have won the popular vote, when George W. Bush, the sitting president, won 50.7% of the vote, defeating Democratic challenger John Kerry. In fact, this election could go down as the GOP’s best showing in decades, possibly rivaling their performance in 1988, when George H.W. Bush, riding high on the popularity of President Ronald Reagan, captured more than 53% of the national vote and secured 426 Electoral College votes.
