Trump leading as results of US presidential poll trickles in

Former President Donald Trump is ahead of Vice-President Kamala Harris in the race for the White House.

As of 5:44am Nigerian time when this report was filed, Trump had amassed 230 Electoral College votes while Harris trailed with 205 votes.

Associated Press, a leading US news organisation gave a breakdown of how the rivals fared across states.

Nebraska

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6:00 p.m. – Trump won the statewide popular vote in Nebraska for the third consecutive election on Tuesday, receiving two electoral college votes. Nebraska is one of two states that divide electoral votes with two votes going to the statewide winner and one apiece to the winner of each congressional district. Trump won Nebraska by 25 percentage points in 2016 and by 19 points four years later. The last Democratic presidential nominee to win the statewide popular vote in Nebraska was Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. The AP declared Trump the winner at 9:00 p.m. EST.

New York

6:00 p.m. – Harris won New York’s presidential contest on Tuesday, picking up the state’s 28 electoral votes. New York has now voted for the Democrat in every presidential contest since giving Ronald Reagan the nod in his landslide 1984 election. Former President Donald Trump has consistently struggled to gain traction in his home state, losing New York in each of his three runs for the White House. New York’s electoral vote haul is the fourth richest, after California, Texas and Florida, but has one fewer vote than it did four years ago due to population shifts. The Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 9:00 p.m. EST.

North Dakota

6:00 p.m. – Trump won North Dakota’s three electoral votes on Tuesday. His victory continues a decadeslong streak of Republican presidential wins in the conservative state known for its agriculture and energy production. The last Democratic presidential candidate to win the state was President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. North Dakota has about 784,000 residents. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 9:00 p.m. EST.

South Dakota

6:00 p.m. – Trump won South Dakota’s three electoral votes for president Tuesday. The Republican nominee had been expected to prevail comfortably in a state where GOP voters outnumber Democrats by more than 2-to-1. No Democratic nominee has carried South Dakota since President Lyndon Johnson won in 1964. Trump received nearly 62% of the vote in each of his previous runs for president, and both times his margin was more than 26 percentage points. Almost 51% of the state’s 616,000 registered voters are Republicans, while fewer than 24% are Democrats. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 9:00 p.m. EST.

Louisiana

6:00 p.m. – Trump won Louisiana on Tuesday for the third consecutive presidential election, increasing his electoral vote tally by eight. In addition to voter support, Trump has various powerful political allies in and from the Bayou State, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Gov. Jeff Landry. In Louisiana, where the GOP currently holds each statewide elected office and controls the legislature, the Republican nominee for president has won every election since 1996. Trump won Louisiana with about 58% of the vote in both 2016 and 2020. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 9:00 p.m. EST.

Wyoming

6:00 p.m. – Trump beat Harris in deep-red Wyoming to win the least-populated state’s three electoral votes on Tuesday. One of the most Republican states by almost any measure, Wyoming gave Trump his widest margins of victory in any state in the 2020 and 2016 elections. Trump made at least one fundraising visit to Wyoming in 2024 but did not campaign in the state. He focused instead on states less certain to deliver him wins. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 9:00 p.m. EST.

Illinois

5:38 p.m. – Harris won Illinois on Tuesday, claiming the state’s 19 electoral votes for Democrats. The reliably blue state, the home of former President Barack Obama, has supported Democratic presidential candidates since 1992. The Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 8:38 p.m. EST.

New Jersey

5:30 p.m. – Harris won New Jersey’s 14 electoral votes on Tuesday. Harris’ victory over Republican Donald Trump continues Democrats’ dominance in the state, which has gone with the Democratic candidate for president in every election since 1988. New Jersey Democrats have nearly 1 million more registered voters than Republicans. Trump has ties to New Jersey, including golf clubs across the state. He also operated casinos in the shore resort of Atlantic City, but they ended in bankruptcy. The Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 8:30 p.m. EST.

Arkansas

5:30 p.m. – Trump secured Arkansas’ six electoral votes on Tuesday, winning the heavily Republican state for the third presidential election in a row. Trump had the backing of the state’s top Republican figures, including Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Sanders, who had served as Trump’s White House press secretary, endorsed the former president’s bid and campaigned for him. Former Gov. Asa Hutchinson ran unsuccessfully for the GOP nomination and declined to endorse Trump’s reelection. Democrats have not won a presidential election in Arkansas since 1996, when native son Bill Clinton won reelection. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 8:30 p.m. EST.

Mississippi

5:00 p.m. – Trump won Mississippi on Tuesday, claiming the state’s six electoral votes and continuing a long winning streak for Republicans. The last Democratic presidential nominee to win Mississippi was Jimmy Carter in 1976. Republicans hold both of Mississippi’s U.S. Senate seats, three of its four U.S. House seats, all eight statewide offices and a wide majority in the state House and Senate. Gov. Tate Reeves and most other Republican officials in Mississippi endorsed Trump, while Democratic U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson endorsed the Democratic nominee, Kamala Harris. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 8:00 p.m. EST.

Rhode Island

5:00 p.m. – Harris won Rhode Island on Tuesday, giving her four electoral votes and continuing the Democrats’ dominance in the state. The last time a Republican presidential candidate won Rhode Island was in 1984, when former President Ronald Reagan defeated former Vice President Walter Mondale. President Joe Biden easily defeated former President Donald Trump in Rhode Island in 2020, winning more than 59% of the vote. Hillary Clinton also did well in the state, winning over 54% of the vote in 2016. Given the Democrats’ success in Rhode Island, presidential candidates rarely spend time campaigning in the state. The Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 8:00 p.m. EST.

Florida

5:01 p.m. – Trump won Florida on Tuesday for the third consecutive election, earning the state’s 30 electoral votes. Once a crucial battleground state, Florida has been drifting toward the Republican Party in recent years. A Democratic presidential nominee has not won the state since Barack Obama carried it in 2012. Meanwhile, Trump grew his margin of victory in his adopted home state between 2016 and 2020. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 8:01 p.m. EST.

Massachusetts

5:00 p.m. – Harris won Massachusetts on Tuesday, continuing a decadeslong streak of victories for Democratic presidential candidates in the Bay State. The last time Massachusetts backed a Republican candidate was in 1984 when voters cast their ballots for Ronald Reagan. The commonwealth and its 11 electoral votes have become one of the reliable gains for Democrats in presidential elections. In 2020, Joe Biden easily defeated Donald Trump, winning more than 65% of the vote. The state has also become a steady source of campaign cash for both Republican and Democratic candidates, though few spend time campaigning in the state. Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 8:00 p.m. EST.

Connecticut

5:00 p.m. – Harris won Connecticut on Tuesday, extending the state’s long trend of supporting Democratic presidential candidates and adding seven electoral votes to her tally. This year marked the ninth consecutive presidential election in which Connecticut voters favored the Democratic candidate. The last Republican presidential candidate to win the state was George H.W. Bush in 1988. Former President Donald Trump has now lost Connecticut three times, first to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, then to Joe Biden and now to Harris. The Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 8:00 p.m. EST.

Maryland

5:00 p.m. – Harris won Maryland and its 10 electoral votes on Tuesday. Maryland is a heavily Democratic state that is home to many federal workers next to the nation’s capital. The state has a Black population of about 30%, the largest percentage of any state outside the Deep South. Democrats outnumber Republicans 2-1 in the state. Former President Donald Trump is deeply unpopular in Maryland. In 2020, Trump received just 32% of the vote. A Republican has not won a presidential election in the state since George H.W. Bush in 1988. The Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 8:00 p.m. EST.

Oklahoma

5:00 p.m. – Trump won Oklahoma and its seven electoral votes on Tuesday, defeating Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. A Democrat has not won the presidential race in Oklahoma since 1964, and Trump was heavily favored to win. The last time a Democrat won one of Oklahoma’s 77 counties in a presidential race was in 2000 when Al Gore won nine counties in the eastern part of the state during his loss to then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 8:00 p.m. EST.

Alabama

5:00 p.m. – Trump won Alabama for the third consecutive election on Tuesday, adding nine electoral votes to the Republican’s tally. Democrats have not won Alabama since 1976, when Jimmy Carter carried the state. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 8:00 p.m. EST.

West Virginia

4:30 p.m. – Former President Donald Trump won West Virginia for the third straight presidential election cycle on Tuesday. The victory adds four electoral votes to the former president’s count. West Virginia has one fewer electoral vote this cycle after losing a congressional seat following the 2020 census. The state is one of only two where Trump won every county in 2016 and 2020. No Democrat has won the presidential election in West Virginia since Bill Clinton in 1996. Republicans control every elected partisan statewide office in West Virginia. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 7:30 p.m. EST.

4:00 p.m. – Trump won the presidential election in Indiana on Tuesday. The reliably conservative state, where Republicans have held the governor’s office for 20 years, gave Trump its 11 electoral votes over Democrat Kamala Harris. Indiana has been favorable toward Trump in his three races for the White House. In 2016, the year he won the presidency, and again in 2020, Trump took 57% of the Hoosier state vote. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 7:00 p.m. EST.

Kentucky

4:00 p.m. – Trump won Kentucky for the third consecutive election on Tuesday, adding eight electoral votes to his tally. Trump has won Kentucky in every election since Democrat Bill Clinton carried the Bluegrass State in 1996. Kentucky’s most powerful Republican, Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell, once called Trump “morally responsible” for the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack. But in a remarkable turnaround, McConnell endorsed Trump’s bid to return to the White House. During Trump’s term, the two worked together to pass a tax cuts package and to put three conservative justices on the Supreme Court. The Associated Press declared Trump the winner at 7:00 p.m. EST.

Vermont

4:00 p.m. – Harris won the Democratic stronghold of Vermont on Tuesday. The small state has voted in favor of Democratic candidates in the previous eight presidential elections. Vermont Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican, has been a critic of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and voted for Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 election. The Associated Press declared Harris the winner at 7:00 p.m. EST.