Donald Trump wins Florida and destroys the deep blue stronghold that the Democrats have held for thirty years
Donald Trump will win the thirty Electoral College votes in his home state of Florida, but winning one county will be particularly satisfying.
The Associated Press called the race just an hour after polls closed, with Trump leading by more than 11 percent over Vice President Kamala Harris with 86 percent of the vote reported.
Florida used to be a swing state, but has moved further to the right in recent elections.
In this election, almost every region in the state switched Republican.
Miami-Dade County saw the largest increase, with a shift of 18 percentage points, with Trump coming in first Republican presidential candidate to win the county since George HW Bush in 1988.
In 2016, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton won Miami-Dade by 30 points.
Donald and Melania Trump speak to reporters after casting their votes in the 2024 election in Palm Beach, Florida on Tuesday, November 5
Trump won the Sunshine State in 2016 by just 1.2 percent over Clinton. He widened the gap in 2020 with a 3.3 percent gap between him and Joe Biden.
If the results stay on track, Trump is poised for a much larger margin of victory against Harris this election cycle.
Trump moved his residence to Florida in 2019 with then-First Lady Melania Trump and their son Barron. He made his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida his primary residence after living all his life in the liberal enclave of New York City.
In Florida, results are still being tabulated, but with more than 5.5 million votes for Trump as of 8:15 p.m., it was impossible for Harris to overtake her Republican rival.
Trump and his wife Melania cast their votes in the 2024 presidential election on Tuesday at the Morton and Barbara Mandel Recreation Center polling station in Palm Beach.
A ballroom full of Trump fanatics, surrogates and allies fills the Palm Beach Convention Center for an election night watch party
Trump and former first lady Melania visited campaign headquarters in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Tuesday, November 5, to visit and thank the former president’s campaign staff on Election Day
Trump answered questions from reporters as Melania stood next to him, holding up her sunglasses in the gym.
The former president said he felt “confident” after casting his ballot, even though the latest polls showed the race nearly tied.
Melania answered a quick question about how she was feeling. She said, ‘Very good. Thank you.’
Trump holds his election night watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Center.
Surrogates, allies and supporters gathered in a ballroom for what they hoped would be a victory celebration with the former president.
