DONALD TRUMP has been elected the 45th President of the United States.
The Republican candidate defied pollsters, pundits and bookies taking several swing states.
At a victory rally in New York he confirmed Hilary Clinton had called him to concede defeat in what was a hugely divisive campaign.
In his victory speech he struck a gracious tone and spoke about seeking partnership and not conflict and he called for the wounds of division to be healed.
The Republican candidate has scored a massive upset - Heres how it played out form early this morning
Watching the returns at 9:45pm. #ElectionNight #MAGA🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/HfuJeRZbod
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 9, 2016
With only a handful of states left to report, it still seemed possible that his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton would emerge the winner of the popular vote nationwide.
But her voters were outnumbered in the states that mattered - with major swing states like Florida and Ohio saw huge turnouts in favour of Donald Trump.
This team has so much to be proud of. Whatever happens tonight, thank you for everything. pic.twitter.com/x13iWOzILL
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) November 9, 2016
He has penetrated Clinton'’s so-called '“blue wall'” with major turnouts in Wisconsin, Michigan and New Hampshire - the two are even neck and neck in Pennsylvania, which has voted Democrat in every election since Clinton's husband Bill Clinton took the Oval Office in 1992.
The new President Trump will also inherit a fully Republican congress, as his party won both the Senate and House of Representatives.
Financial markets around the world are already falling sharply, in response to the news, with the dollar also sliding and a collapse in the value of the Mexican peso.
The website of the Canadian immigration department has been crashed for several hours, under massive pressure due to increased traffic from the United States.
