US Election: Donald Trump Wins US Election

The business mogul garnered more than 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency after the polls closed on Tuesday.

Update 20:

Donald Trump will visit the White House Thursday to meet with President Obama, who phoned his successor Wednesday morning to offer congratulations.

“From the White House residence, the president phoned Donald Trump to congratulate him on his victory early this morning,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest said.

Update 19:

Saudi King Salman expressed hope Wednesday that US president-elect Donald Trump would bring stability to the Middle East.

"We wish your excellency success in your mission to achieve security and stability in the Middle East and worldwide," Salman said in a message of congratulations reported by the official Saudi Press Agency.

Update 18:

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has offered US President-elect Donald Trump "close cooperation" on the basis of shared trans-Atlantic values that she says include respect for human dignity regardless of people's origin, gender or religion.

Merkel told reporters in Berlin on Wednesday that the campaign which ended in Trump's victory featured "confrontations that were difficult to bear."

Update 17:

The Iraqi government says relations with the United States have a "solid base" and this is not expected to change after Donald Trump's election as president.

Government spokesman Saad al-Hadithi, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that Iraq is keen to develop its relations with the US and "boost cooperation in the fight against terrorism."

Update 16:

President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, says President Barack Obama called Trump after his victory.

Conway told CNN’s Cassie Spodak that the two had “a great conversation” and will meet soon in Washington.

The White House has yet to comment. But the White House had said it would keep room in Obama's schedule this week for such a meeting and would work with either candidate to move forward with the transition of power.

Update 15:

French President Francois Hollande Wednesday congratulated Donald Trump on his shock victory in the US presidential election, but warned the result would open up a period of uncertainty.

"I congratulate him as is natural between two democratic heads of state," said Hollande. "This American election opens a period of uncertainty."

Update 14:

A senior official at Iran’s presidential office turned the spotlight on different attitudes that US President-elect Donald Trump had expressed in his electoral campaign and reflected today in his victory speech.

“The image that Trump displayed of himself in his victory speech as the president-elect (on Wednesday) was different from his image in the election campaign. This is a considerable point,” Political Deputy of Iran’s Presidential Office Hamid Abutalebi wrote in a post on his Twitter account on Wednesday.

Update 13:

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said no matter who the United States’ president is, Washington has to carry out its commitments under the July 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.

“We do not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries,” Zarif, who is on an official visit to Romania, told reporters on Wednesday, after Republican candidate Donald Trump emerged victorious in the US presidential elections.

“This is the American people’s election,” he added.

Zarif, however, underlined that anyone becoming US president ought to recognize the realities of the world and the Middle East and face them realistically.

“Iran and the US have no political relations but the US must carry out what it has undertaken as an international multilateral commitment in the JCPOA,” he stressed, referring to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the nuclear agreement Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) reached in July 2015 and implemented in January this year.

Update 12:

German foreign minister sees “more difficult times” with Trump

Update 11:

British Prime Minister Theresa May congratulated Donald Trump on winning the US presidency Wednesday, saying Britain and the United States would remain "strong and close partners on trade, security and defense".

"I look forward to working with President-elect Donald Trump, building on these ties to ensure the security and prosperity of our nations in the years ahead."

Update 10:

Iran’s Foreign Ministry called for a revision of US policies towards the Middle East following election of Donald Trump as US president, pointing to the Iranian nation’s “bitter experience” of US conduct in the past decades.

“Iranian people and the Islamic Republic of Iran have had and still have unpleasant and bitter experience of the US politicians’ previous policies and approaches over the past decades,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi said on Wednesday, after Republican candidate Trump emerged victorious in the US presidential elections.

“What matters to Iran and its people and would be a gauge for their judgement, is the next US administration’s performance and executive policies,” he underlined.

Update 9:

US leadership is essential in facing up to new security challenges, NATO head Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday as he congratulated Donald Trump on a stunning US election victory.

"We face a challenging new security environment, including hybrid warfare, cyberattacks, the threat of terrorism. US leadership is as important as ever," Stoltenberg said.

"I look forward to working with President-elect Trump," he added.

Update 8:

Leaders of the European Union institutions invited Donald Trump to a summit as soon as he can schedule one and cited security and trade ties as key in a letter on Wednesday congratulating him on his election as US president.

"Today, it is more important than ever to strengthen transatlantic relations," wrote Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker, presidents respectively of the European Council, which groups member states, and the executive European Commission.

Update 7:

NATO officials say they will adapt to Trump.

The US Ambassador to NATO, Douglas Lute, said Wednesday that the alliance has always proven adaptable in the face of political change. He said the alliance is already taking steps that have addressed Mr. Trump’s critique, with increases in European defense spending and the appointment of a new intelligence chief.

“NATO is adapting to new realities,” he said.

Mr. Lute also noted that he expected the bipartisan support for the alliance to continue.

Update 6:

Protests against Trump have broken out in cities across the US, including marches in Oakland, Los Angeles, Portland and New York City.

There are also reports of rallies and demonstrations in downtown Portland, in Davis, California and at Columbia University in New York.

Update 5:

Egypt’s President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi is the only Arab leader to have met with Donald Trump, who has also made no secret of his warmth towards Egypt’s ally Russia.

Sisi also congratulated Trump on his victory.

Spokesman for Egypt’s Foreign Ministry Ahmed Abu Zeid said that Egypt is ready to work with Trump. “In general, I want to emphasize that Egypt has strategic relations with the United States that go beyond who is the president in the White House,” he said.

Update 4:

In a message to Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed confidence that the dialogue between Moscow and Washington, in keeping with each other’s views, meets the interests of both Russia and the US.‬

Update 3:

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas's office Wednesday called on US president-elect Donald Trump to work towards a Palestinian state, with peace efforts with Israel long at a standstill.

"We are ready to deal with the elected president on the basis of a two-state solution and to establish a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders," spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP, referring to the year when Israel occupied the West Bank.‬

Update 2:

In a first reaction from Iran to results of the US presidential election, Spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Behrouz Kamalvandi said the country is ready for any development, but will press on with implementing the JCPOA.

Update 1:

CNN says Democratic Hillary Clinton has called Donald Trump to tell her she will not be president of the United States. 

Trump’s aide Pence called trump election as “historic night”.

Turmp then started speech at his HQ in New York City.

“I just received a call from secretary Clinton. She congratulated us, it’s about us, on our victory, and I congratulated her and her family on a very very hard fought campaign. She fought it very well. Hillary has worked very long and very hard over a long period of time, and we owe her a major debt of gratitude to our country," Trump said.

"Now it’s time for America to bind the wounds of division... I says it is time for us to come together as one united people," he added.

"I pledge to every citizen of our land that I will be president for all Americans, and this is so important for me. For those who have chosen not to support me... I’m reaching out to you for your guidance and your help so that we can work together to unify our great country.”

“Working together, we will begin the urgent task of rebuilding our nation,” he says. “I’ve gotten to know our country so well. Tremendous potential... every single American will have the ability to realize his or her potential...

“We are going to fix our inner cities... we’re gonna rebuild our infrastructure, which will become by the way second to none. And we’re going to put millions of people to work as we rebuild it. We will finally take care of our great veterans.”

Trump describes a “national project of renewal.” He says he will gather the best and brightest. “We will double our growth and have the strongest economy in the world. At the same time, we will get along with all other nations willing to get along with us."

“America will no longer settle for anything less than the best. We must reclaim our country’s destiny, and dream big, and bold and daring."

“I want to tell the world community that while we will always put America’s interests first, we will deal fairly with everyone. We will seek common ground, not hostility. Partnership not conflict."