Republican Donald Trump today claimed victory in the 2024 US presidential election after various American media outlets predicted he had defeated his Democratic rival Kamala Harris.

Trump told a cheering crowd of supporters at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in Florida: “America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate.” He also praised his Vice President JD Vance and his Indian-American wife Usha Chilukuri Vance.

“I want to be the first to congratulate – now I can say congratulations to Vice President-elect JD Vance. And his remarkable and beautiful wife, Usha Vance,” he said.

Both were present at the podium along with Trump’s wife Melania Trump.

He was a “joyful guy,” Trump continued, praising 40-year-old JD Vance.

Vadluru, a quiet village in Andhra Pradesh, is the ancestral home of Usha Vance, who will become the second lady of the United States – and the first who is not white – if Trump is re-elected. She met Vance at Yale Law School and the couple married in 2014 and have three children.

“We made history tonight for a reason, and that reason will simply be that we overcame obstacles that no one thought possible,” Trump said. “It is a political victory the likes of which our country has never seen before.”

In his “victory speech,” he also thanked Tesla and SpaceX boss Elon Musk, who has poured his millions into supporting the Republican presidential candidate since endorsing him in July.

“We have a new star, a star is born: Elon,” Trump said. “He’s a great guy.”

Trump had previously promised to make the United States the “Bitcoin and cryptocurrency capital of the world” and to appoint Musk to conduct a comprehensive review of government waste.

Donald “Trump’s” Kamala Harris

Donald Trump is currently projected to win 267 Electoral College votes, three shy of the magic number of 270. His opponent and incumbent Vice President Kamala Harris trails with 214.

A key factor in Trump’s victory was the Republicans’ victory in seven swing states. From a 6-1 score in favor of Democrats in the 2020 polls, when Trump lost to Joe Biden, these seven states have turned into a 7-0 advantage for Republicans this year.

Trump has already won three swing states – Georgia, Pennsylvania and North Carolina – and is leading in Arizona, Wisconsin, Michigan and Nevada.

If U.S. voters elect Trump, the only president to be impeached twice and the first former president to be convicted criminally, he would be the first president in more than a century to win non-consecutive terms.