Republican Donald Trump claimed victory in the 2024 US presidential elections on Wednesday after winning crucial battlegrounds of Pennsylvania, Georgia, and North Carolina. Various American media houses projected that he had defeated his Democrat rival Kamala Harris, shrinking her possible paths to victory.
Following this, Trump addressed his supporters at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in Florida, where he said "America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate" and that he would usher in a "golden age of America".
He also heaped praise on his running mate JD Vance and his Indian-American wife Usha Chilukuri Vance, addressing him as the "Vice President" as Trump remained just three seats away from the 270 he needs to be elected as the 47th US President.
"I want to be the first one to congratulate -- now I can say Vice President-elect JD Vance. And his remarkable and beautiful wife, Usha Vance," he said.
Trump further heaped praises at the 40-year-old JD Vance, calling him a "feisty guy". Both Vance and his wife Usha were present on the dais along with Trump's wife, Melania Trump.
JD Vance's wife Usha belongs to a quiet village in Andhra Pradesh called Vadluru. If Trump and Vance attain the 270 votes, Usha will become the US Second Lady and the first one who is not white. Usha Vance had met her husband at Yale Law School and the couple married in 2014 They have three children.
"We've made history for a reason tonight, and the reason is going to be just that we overcame obstacles that nobody thought possible," Trump said. "It's a political victory that our country has never seen before."
"We have a country that needs help and it needs help very badly. We’re going to fix our borders and we’re going to fix everything about our country," Trump said in Florida. He also promised Americans that "every single day I will be fighting for you" and that he would usher in the "golden age of America."
In his "victory speech", he also thanked SpaceX and Tesla boss Elon Musk, who has been endorsing Trump since July and throwing millions into backing the Republican presidential candidate. "We have a new star, a star is born: Elon," Trump said. "He's an amazing guy."
Earlier, Trump had also vowed to make the United States the "bitcoin and cryptocurrency capital of the world" and making Elon Musk responsible for a wide-ranging audit of governmental waste.
Donald Trump 3 Votes Away From 2nd Historic Victory
Donald Trump is currently projected to win 267 electoral college votes, and is just three short of the magic figure of 270. His Democrat opponent and incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris is trailing at 224 now, New York Times reported.
A major reason behind Trump's projected victory is the Republican sweep in seven swing states. He has already won three swing states -- Pennsylvania, Georgia, and North Carolina -- and is leading in Wisconsin, Arizona, Michigan, and Nevada.
In 2020 polls Trump lost to Joe Biden after democrats won the swing states with 6-1 score. However, in 2024 elections, all seven states are projected to swing to a 7-0 advantage for the Republicans.
If Donald Trump is chosen by the US voters, then he will become the only president to be impeached twice and the first former president to be criminally convicted. He would also become the first president to win non-consecutive terms in more than a century.