Election 2024 live updates: Biden addresses nation after Trump’s historic win

Four years after Donald Trump refused to acknowledge losing the 2020 presidential election, President Joe Biden said his administration would honor Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris by facilitating a “peaceful and orderly transition” to the incoming Republican administration.

In remarks delivered from the White House Rose Garden to an audience that included a large portion of Biden’s cabinet and his granddaughter, Finnegan Biden, the president called the American electoral system “the greatest experiment in self-government in thehistory of the world.”

“The people vote and choose their own leaders, and hey do it peacefully. And we’re in a democracy — the will of the people always prevails,” he said.

Biden ended his short speech in the Rose Garden, urging supporters to “Remember, defeat does not mean we are defeated. We lost this battle. The America of your dreams is calling for you to get back up.”

He added: “That’s the story of America for over 240 years, and counting. It’s the story for all of us, not just some of us. The American experiment endures. We’re going to be okay, but we need to stay engaged. We need to keep going. And above all, we need to keep the faith.”

Biden said he spoke to Harris yesterday, calling her “a partner and a public servant.”

“She ran an inspiring campaign, and everyone got to see something that I learned early on to respect so much. Her character, she has a backbone like a ramrod,” he added.

President Joe Biden began his speech from the Rose Garden on Thursday by saying, “For over 200 years, America has carried on the greatest experiment in self-government in the history of the world. That’s not hyperbole. That’s a fact.”

“The people vote and choose their own leaders, and they do it peacefully. And we’re in a democracy. The will of the people always prevails,” he added. “Yesterday, I spoke with President-elect Trump to congratulate him on his victory, and I assured him, I direct my entire administration work with his team to ensure a peaceful and orderly transition.”

Biden will address the nation from the White House Rose Garden at 11am ET (4pm GMT).

Meanwhile, Trump is celebrating his election win by beginning the process of choosing who will join his second administration, as his conservative allies and surrogates jostle for position in the hope of securing a top role.

Trump completed a shocking political comeback by winning the election four years after leaving the White House.

The former president surpassed the magic number of 270 Electoral College votes early yesterday after winning key battleground states.

He also won 51 percent of the popular vote, picking up 72.5m votes to Harris’s 68m as she fell well short of Biden’s 2020 total of 81m.

But following his dramatic election win this week it is looking increasingly likely that won’t happen and Donald Trump will once again evade repercussions for his actions.

More than five months ago, a New York jury found Trump guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records stemming from hush-money payments he gave to adult film star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election.

Trump has won at least 295 electoral college votes, more than what was needed to push him over the line of 270 to become the president-elect of the United States. Though two states (Arizona and Nevada) have not yet been called, Trump has already surpassed the number of votes to secure his return trip to the White House.

Votes will continue to be counted and certified in the coming days and weeks, so these numbers may not be final. But at this stage in the race, here are the numbers you need to know from the 2024 presidential election, from turnout to Senate control.

The Dobbs decision in 2022 not only eliminated the constitutional right to an abortion but also left chaos and confusion in its wake, raising troubling questions about the future of reproductive healthcare in the United States.

Kelly Rissman and Alicja Hagopian report.