Democrats confront the fact that Trump's dark vision has prevailed as the result sinks | US elections 2024

Millions of Americans woke up Wednesday to a changed country and a shaken world after realizing Donald Trump's surprise return to power.

As the magnitude of Trump's victory began to sink in – including clear dominance not only in the Electoral College but likely the popular vote by at least 71 million votes as well as control of the US Senate – there were expressions of celebration across Trump world. On the other side of America's widening partisan divide, there was confusion, foreboding and, in some prominent circles, silence.

“It's going to be great,” said Trump's eldest son Don Jr. He summed up the MAGA mood on X, the social media platform of tech billionaire Elon Musk, who played a key role in the triumph.

Democratic and progressive Americans, at least 67 million of whom voted for the Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, have struggled to come to terms with the overnight reality. They were confronted with the fact that Trump's attitude toward the American people was built on his dark and lying vision of a country in terminal decline, “inundated” by the murder of “illegal aliens” and on the verge of a communist takeover that prevailed.

Van Jones, the political commentator, spoke for many when he said people were waking up “to a nightmare.” But we will find a way.”

Trump made little attempt to allay the fears of those who did not vote for him when he delivered a victory speech at 2:30 a.m. in West Palm Beach, Florida – three hours before the Associated Press officially announced the results. He spoke of creating a “strong, secure and prosperous America” ​​but also said he would “seal these borders” and called the media an “enemy camp.”

Harris hosted an election night party at her Washington DC alma mater, Howard University, but neglected to address the crowd after the prevailing winds of the election became irrefutable. She was expected to address the nation from the same location on Wednesday at 4 p.m. Eastern time.

A few hours before her speech, Harris had a telephone conversation with Trump, an aide said, in which she congratulated him and emphasized the importance of a peaceful transfer of power. The remark was undoubtedly sincere, but it was also a blow given Trump's efforts to undermine his 2020 defeat, which culminated in the insurrection at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Her aborted victory celebration, followed by a belated concession speech, was shockingly reminiscent of Hillary Clinton's painful experience in 2016. For the second time in eight years, a woman had failed to break the “highest, hardest glass ceiling” and become America's first female president – thwarted by a man who campaigned against her with the most derogatory words.

Trump denigrated Harris as having a “low IQ” and sought to question her racial background. Even then, Harris's own appeal to American voters, based largely on her counterattack on Trump as a would-be authoritarian and even “fascist” leader who posed a threat to democracy, failed to stand.

With four In states yet to be called, including the critical battlegrounds of Arizona and Nevada, Trump easily reached the 270 Electoral College votes needed to send him back to the Oval Office. He was on 292 to Harris' 224.

With a 51% to 48% vote in his favor and a nationwide majority of all voters also leaning toward Trump, 2024 was on track to be the most convincing victory by a Republican presidential candidate since George W. Bush's re-election in 2004 The contrast was stark with the opinion polls, which had predicted a razor-thin finish almost everywhere for weeks.

Michigan was forecast for Trump by midday Wednesday. The news was poignant because that's what it meant This was the second time Trump had done this destroyed the so-called “blue wall” of the Rust Belt states. The three states – Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin – have voted as a bloc in every presidential election since 1992, always for the Democrat, except in 2016, when Trump prevailed for the first time.

The corresponding cheer and dismay that gripped the United States spread throughout the world. Leaders embodying Trump's “strongman” image rushed to congratulate him on his victory, led by Viktor Orbán, the Hungarian prime minister who had been close to him for years.

“The greatest comeback in the political history of the USA!” Orbán enthused.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also announced what he called “a new beginning for America and a powerful recommitment to the great alliance between Israel and America.”

Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, put on a brave face and praised Trump's “peace through strength” approach. But at a time when Russia is making progress on the battlefield, the US election result spelled potential disaster for Ukraine, given Trump's threat to cut off military funding.

Read more of the Guardian's coverage of the 2024 US election

Trump's victory also came five days before world leaders meet in Baku, Azerbaijan, for the Cop29 climate summit, where they will try to forge a deal in which rich nations help developing countries adopt a fossil fuel-powered one to avoid growth. Trump's mantra “Drill, Baby, Drill” and his warning that he will withdraw the US from the Paris Agreement for a second time now hang ominously over the proceedings.

Eleven weeks before Trump takes office, Americans now face the challenge of coping with a seismic shift. Trump will be the first convicted felon to hold the presidency, a distinction that pales into insignificance given the unprecedented nature of the promises with which he came into office.

He has promised to dismantle the US government as we know it, firing hundreds of thousands of civil servants and replacing them with “yes” people. He has threatened to carry out the largest mass deportation of undocumented immigrants in U.S. history — to the tune of several million. He has vowed to end the independence of the U.S. Justice Department and continue to prosecute his political enemies while eliminating federal cases against him.

And he has said he aspires to become a “dictator,” albeit only on day one.

The Democrats' inevitable autopsy on Harris' defeat had already begun on Wednesday. Questions were raised about whether Joe Biden, whose diabolical approval ratings appeared to be a liability for his running mate, should have resigned earlier and whether there should have been an open primary rather than an anointing from her.

Lindy Li, a senior Democratic official in Pennsylvania, questioned whether Harris has done enough to distance herself from Biden's record. According to polls, the economy and inflation in particular were at the top of voters' list of concerns.

The extraordinary flood of money that flowed into the presidential election campaign was also in focus. About $5.5 billion was spent on the race by the two candidates, political parties and outside groups, making it the second most expensive race in recent memory after 2020.

Musk's controversial involvement in the fight, his advocacy for Trump and offering legally questionable $1 million checks to those who signed his pro-Trump petition, as well as the unhindered spread of misinformation in X will also be part of the post-debate . Critics noted that Musk's shares in his company Tesla rose by more than $13 billion within hours of Trump's victory being announced.

During the campaign, Musk pumped in around $119 million through his America Pac funding organization to encourage Trump supporters to take part in the election. In return, Trump has hinted that the Tesla and SpaceX owner could be put in charge in his second administration, tasked with cutting trillions of dollars from the federal budget.

Musk delighted his fans and goaded his critics with a bizarre post marking Trump's victory in “Let that sink in,” he wrote.

The election has revealed additional structural fault lines that Democratic leaders will have to grapple with over time. According to exit polls, Trump has made inroads with Latino and black male voters, including in key swing states.

Harris' performance in major urban centers – including Philadelphia, Detroit and Milwaukee in the blue wall states – was also slightly below Biden's numbers in 2024, raising further concerns about the party's reliance on white voters in cities and towns suburbs.

On MSNBC Tuesday night, commentator Joy Reid expressed her disappointment with white women in North Carolina who did not vote for Harris, contributing to the Democrat's loss in the swing state.

“Ultimately they didn’t hit their numbers, we have to be open about why,” Reid said. “Black voters came through for Harris, white voters didn’t.”

Anna Betts also contributed reporting