By Donald Trump secured Arizona’s 11 electoral votes Saturday, television networks projected, completing his sweep of all seven battleground states in a decisive victory over Vice President Kamala Harris that has triggered preparations for a historic White House transition.
CNN and NBC called Arizona for Trump four days after the election, confirming his capture of a state President Joe Biden narrowly won in 2020. The Republican’s triumph extends beyond the presidency, with his party maintaining control of the Senate and approaching a House majority, holding 213 seats to Democrats’ 205, according to CNN’s projections.
The White House announced Saturday that Biden will meet Trump in the Oval Office Wednesday, restoring a transition tradition that Trump himself broke in 2020 when he refused to concede and skipped Biden’s inauguration. Biden, who dropped out of the race in July citing age concerns, called Trump Wednesday to congratulate him on the victory.
Trump’s comeback has already begun reshaping Washington, with campaign manager Susie Wiles named as his incoming chief of staff, the first woman to hold the position. The president-elect ruled out returning former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley to his administration, while potential newcomers include anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and tech mogul Elon Musk.
The 78-year-old Trump won the election by approximately 4 million votes, securing Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, Nevada, and Georgia along with Arizona. His victory came despite a criminal conviction, two impeachments, and warnings from former staff about authoritarian tendencies.
Exit polls revealed voters’ primary concerns centered on the economy and inflation that surged under Biden’s post-COVID leadership. Democrats have begun internal recriminations over Harris’s defeat, with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggesting to The New York Times that “had the president gotten out sooner, there may have been other candidates in the race.”
Among potential cabinet appointees, former Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell and Florida Senator Marco Rubio lead contenders for secretary of state, despite Rubio’s 2016 characterization of Trump as a “con artist” and the “most vulgar person to ever aspire to the presidency.”
Kennedy, discussing a possible healthcare role, told NBC News Wednesday, “I’m not going to take away anybody’s vaccines,” while Musk could receive a position auditing government waste following his enthusiastic support for Trump’s campaign.
VOA
