USA Donald Trump ahead of second US presidency
Donald Trump is poised to win the US presidential election and return to the White House. The 78-year-old Republican has already declared himself the winner of the election, although he still lacked a few votes from the electorate.
06.11.2024, 10:48
SDA
Trump announced a radical agenda for his second term as US President that could change America and the world. He promised the "biggest deportation in history" of migrants from the USA, an end to the Russian war in Ukraine, high import tariffs and tax cuts.
At Trump's side are tech billionaire Elon Musk, whom he wants to entrust with cutting government spending, and anti-vaccination campaigner Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is to be given a role in the healthcare system. Trump denies the climate crisis and announced a drastic expansion of oil and natural gas production in the USA.
In front of his supporters in Florida, Trump promised a "golden age" for America and sees himself as having been appointed to power with an "unprecedented mandate". He narrowly survived an assassination attempt during a campaign appearance in July.
Only possible counterweight in Congress
With the Republicans' newly won majority in the US Senate, Trump could have more leeway for his initiatives. The Democrats of his opponent Kamala Harris could only form a counterweight if they manage to take back the House of Representatives as the second chamber of Congress. If the Republicans retain control of the House of Representatives, Trump can rule through.
With the Senate majority, the Republicans could further expand the conservative majority in the Supreme Court, which will shape the USA for decades to come. Supreme Court judges are appointed for life.
Harris failed with voters
The current Vice President Harris warned Americans of Trump's dictatorial ambitions and wanted to make abortion rights an issue. However, she did not get through to voters who were dissatisfied with the high inflation following the coronavirus pandemic.
Americans had more confidence in Trump on the economy - and many also said in polls that the personal qualities of the candidates were less important to them than their own finances.
President Joe Biden is unpopular in the USA - and this also rubbed off on Harris. She only took over the presidential candidacy in the summer from Biden, who gave up after a disastrous performance in the TV duel against Trump.
Who decided the election?
The former president scored points in the election campaign with promises such as halving energy costs and stoking fears of an alleged invasion of criminal migrants. Compared to the previous election four years ago, he performed better among blacks and Latinos, who were traditionally a bastion of the Democrats. Harris, on the other hand, won significantly more women according to polls. Musk turned the online platform X, which he bought for 44 billion dollars when it was still Twitter, into a campaign machine for Trump.
Controversial assessment of Trump's first term in office
In his first term in office, Trump implemented tough measures on the southern border of the USA, such as the construction of a metre-high fence and the separation of migrant children from their parents, and was criticized for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. From the Democrats' perspective, he disqualified himself as a politician with his refusal to acknowledge defeat in the 2020 election and the storming of the Capitol in Washington by his supporters. Several lawsuits are pending against Trump - which should no longer be an issue.
Embattled states voted for Trump
The victory first in North Carolina, Georgia and then Pennsylvania brought Trump to 267 electoral votes, according to calculations by the AP news agency. A total of 270 electoral votes are required for victory. Harris was on 224 electoral votes at the time.
Harris skipped the election party
Harris did not appear at her party's election party in Washington on election night. She is yet another Democratic candidate who wanted to be the first woman to enter the White House to lose to Donald Trump. In 2016, he surprisingly beat former US Secretary of State and presidential wife Hillary Clinton.
The decisive swing states
The US President is not elected directly by the people, but by electors representing the states. As the majority of states vote reliably for Democrats or Republicans, the result in seven so-called swing states, in which both parties have a realistic chance of success before the election, will ultimately be decisive.
The swing states are Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia and North Carolina - as well as Arizona and Nevada in the west of the USA. Pennsylvania in particular, with 19 electoral votes, is always seen as potentially decisive. Both Harris and Trump were particularly active there in the home stretch of the election campaign.
Also a decision on congressional majorities
The election also decided the majorities in the US Congress. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives and around a third of the 100 seats in the Senate were up for election. The party that controls Congress can severely limit a president's room for maneuver.
The Republicans currently hold the majority in the House of Representatives with 220 to 212 seats.
The key to the Republicans' important success in the Senate was the victory of Republican Senator Deb Fischer from the state of Nebraska. She defended her hard-fought seat against the independent candidate Dan Osborn and thus helped her party over the hurdle to gain control of the House of Representatives.
Abortion rights in several states
Voters in several states were also able to decide on abortion rights. After the US Supreme Court overturned a ruling from the 1970s that secured it nationwide, it is a matter for the states. Several of them, which are dominated by Republicans, subsequently imposed abortion bans. In Missouri, voters voted to repeal the ban; in Arizona, the right to abortion was enshrined. In Florida, the right to abortion fell short of the necessary majority of 60 percent.
