Trump wins the White House in political comeback rooted in appeals to frustrated voters

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump was elected the 47th president of the United States on Wednesday, an extraordinary comeback for a former president who refused to accept defeat four years ago.

With a win in Wisconsin, Trump cleared the 270 electoral votes needed to clinch the presidency. Trump is also on track to win the popular vote total, currently leading Vice President Kamala Harris by more than 4 million votes with some votes still to be counted.

“I want to thank the American people for the extraordinary honor of being elected your 47th president and your 45th president," Trump told throngs of cheering supporters in Florida.

In state after state, Trump outperformed what he did in the 2020 election while Harris failed to do as well as Joe Biden did in winning the presidency four years ago. Upon taking office again, Trump also will work with a Senate that will now be in Republican hands, while control of the House hadn’t been determined.

“We’ve been through so much together, and today you showed up in record numbers to deliver a victory,” Trump said. “This was something special and we’re going to pay you back," he said.

In his second term, Trump has vowed to pursue an agenda centered on dramatically reshaping the federal government.

The results cap a historically tumultuous and competitive election season that included two assassination attempts targeting Trump and a shift to a new Democratic nominee just a month before the party’s convention. Trump will inherit a range of challenges when he assumes office on Jan. 20, including heightened political polarization and global crises that are testing America’s influence abroad.

His win against Harris, the first woman of color to lead a major party ticket, marks the second time he has defeated a female rival in a general election. Harris, the current vice president, rose to the top of the ticket after Biden exited the race amid alarm about his advanced age. Despite an initial surge of energy around her campaign, she struggled to convince disillusioned voters that she represented a break from an unpopular administration.

The vice president has not publicly spoken since the race was called. Her campaign co-chair, Cedric Richmond, said she would speak Wednesday: "She will be back here tomorrow.”

Trump is the first former president to return to power since Grover Cleveland regained the White House in the 1892 election. He is the first person convicted of a felony to be elected president and, at 78, is the oldest person elected to the office. His vice president, 40-year-old Ohio Sen. JD Vance, will become the highest-ranking member of the millennial generation in the U.S. government.

Congratulations started pouring in from world leaders even before Trump's victory was announced.

While Harris focused much of her initial message around themes of joy, Trump channeled a powerful sense of anger and resentment among voters.

He seized on frustrations over high prices and fears about crime and migrants who illegally entered the country on Biden’s watch. He also highlighted wars in the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to cast Democrats as presiding over – and encouraging – a world in chaos.

As he prepares to return to the White House, Trump has vowed to swiftly enact a radical agenda that would transform nearly every aspect of American government.

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Colvin reported from West Palm Beach, Florida. This story has been edited.