Former President Donald Trump is projected to win a second term, nearly four years after leaving Washington under controversial circumstances.

Trump is the winner in battleground Pennsylvania, as well as traditionally red state Alaska, pushing his electoral count to 270 votes.

Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in an election marked by unexpected events, including a criminal trial involving Trump during the campaign, two assassination attempts against him, and a reshuffling of the Democratic ticket after President Joe Biden withdrew.

He becomes the first president in over 120 years to lose the White House and then reclaim it, following President Grover Cleveland's example in 1892.

Trump secured the 270 electoral votes required for victory after a roughly 100-day campaign against Harris, with polling in seven key swing states indicating a tight race until Election Day.

In the end, Trump achieved a solid win, flipping Georgia, retaining North Carolina, and dismantling the so-called “blue wall.” He is projected to narrowly win the popular vote, a feat he did not achieve in 2016 and which has eluded Republicans since 1992, save for one occasion.

Exit polls showed Trump making significant gains with Latino voters, strengthening his margins in rural regions, and running nearly even with Harris among young men—a demographic his campaign actively pursued.

Trump has promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in U.S. history, extend the 2017 tax cuts, impose universal tariffs on foreign imports, roll back protections for transgender youth, close the Department of Education, and reduce environmental regulations. He also indicated that he would prioritize appointing loyalists to his administration.

Trump overcame what was anticipated to be a significant deficit among female voters. Harris focused heavily on the issue of abortion rights after Trump's Supreme Court appointees joined other conservatives to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022. This election marked the first since the end of Roe.

Trump's election could provide the GOP with an opportunity to strengthen its influence on the Supreme Court, as Republicans regained control of the Senate.

At 78, Trump becomes the oldest president elected in U.S. history, narrowly surpassing Biden's age when he took office in 2020. Despite previously stating he had no issue releasing his medical records, Trump has yet to provide detailed information.

Trump will be only the second president in American history to serve two non-consecutive terms, but he will be unable to seek re-election in 2028 due to the 22nd Amendment.