After securing the key battleground states, Donald Trump surpassed the 270 electoral votes needed to be elected the 47th president of the United States.
The Associated Press called the race at 5:34 a.m. EST Nov. 6.
Seven things to know:
1. Mr. Trump's win in Wisconsin put him over the 270 electoral votes needed to secure the presidency. As of 10 a.m. EST Wednesday, he earned 277 votes and Vice President Kamala Harris, 224.
Approximately 83.7 million early votes were cast nationwide, including both mail-in and early in-person ballots, according to NBC News. This tally was higher in 2020, when more than 110 million mail-in and early in-person votes were cast, CNN reported. The increase in 2020 early voting was largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of 11:45 am EST Wednesday, Mr. Trump won more than 71.7 million votes and Ms. Harris earned more than 66.8 million, according to the AP.
Mr. Trump reclaimed Wisconsin and Pennsylvania after losing the swing states to President Joe Biden in the 2020 election, playing a key role in his win. He also secured wins in other battleground states, including Georgia and North Carolina.
2. Republicans won back the U.S. Senate, while control of the House has yet to be determined. More than 100 House races were still up for grabs as of Wednesday morning. Republicans' takeback of the Senate gives the party a major role in confirming Mr. Trump's Cabinet and any Supreme Court nominees, should there be a vacancy.
The Republican party gained control of the Senate by winning seats over Democrat incumbents in Ohio and Montana. Republican Jim Justice also has won the West Virginia Senate race, NBC News projects. That seat was previously held by Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin, who did not seek re-election.
Whether the White House will have a divided Congress has yet to be determined. If Republicans win the House, the party will have major influence in whether to support or block Mr. Trump's policy agenda, which includes a potential overhaul of the Affordable Care Act.
3. Mr. Trump declared victory from his election headquarters in West Palm Beach, Fla., several hours before the presidential race was called. He took the stage around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday after Pennsylvania was called in his favor at the Palm Beach County Convention Center, delivering a 25-minute address in which he touted messages of unity and healing.
"It's time to put the divisions of the past four years behind us," Mr. Trump said. "It's time to unite."
"I want to thank the American people for the extraordinary honor of being elected 47th president and your 45th president," Mr. Trump said. "And every citizen, I will fight for you, for your family and for your future."
He also referenced Republicans' Senate wins and expressed support for House Speaker Mike Johnson.
Ms. Harris' campaign co-chair, Cedric Richmond, announced that the vice president would not address supporters at her Howard University watch party in Washington, D.C. She is expected to speak later on Nov. 6.
4. Mr. Trump is the second U.S. president to win a non-consecutive term. The first was Grover Cleveland, the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. If Mr. Trump wins the popular vote once the results are fully calculated, he would also be the first Republication president-elect to do so since George W. Bush in 2004, according to The New York Times.
5. Much remains to be seen on what the outcome of the election holds for healthcare in the near-term. Healthcare ebbed and flowed as a priority throughout the Republican and Democratic campaigns for the White House, with neither candidate extending a firm platform on healthcare policy.
Compared to past elections, conversations about the Affordable Care Act's future were largely overshadowed by those on immigration and the economy.
During Mr. Trump's second term, he will face a decision on whether to support legislation to permanently extend the ACA's enhanced premium tax credits for marketplace coverage. The credits, originally extended through the Inflation Reduction Act, are set to expire at the end of 2025. Mr. Trump has said he would consider changing the ACA if a less expensive alternative is proposed.
Mr. Trump's running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, has indicated that Mr. Trump's healthcare agenda in a second term would include deregulating the individual insurance market. Part of this would be reintroducing risk pools in the individual market, a practice that existed before the ACA.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, during a campaign stop last week, said "massive reform" of the 14-year-old law is needed, and promised a "very aggressive first 100 days agenda" under Mr. Trump, according to an NBC News report.
Health analysts also predict Medicare Advantage could see significant growth under Mr. Trump, according to KFF Health News. Project 2025 — a collection of conservative federal policy proposals from the Heritage Foundation that the president-elect has distanced himself from — called for making the private-run plans the default enrollment option.
6. Shares of U.S. health insurers UnitedHealth Group, Humana and CVS Health climbed following Mr. Trump’s election victory, rising by as much as 7.9%, 10%, and 7.2%, respectively, Bloomberg reported on Nov. 6. The gains were driven by expectations that the incoming administration would increase payments to companies offering private Medicare plans, such as Medicare Advantage.
7. Throughout the presidential campaign, Mr. Trump has reiterated his stance that the legality of abortion be left to states to decide, and has denied claims that he would support a national abortion ban. Such a ban would be unlikely to cross his desk as president, unless Republicans gained a major majority in the House.
Reproductive rights were on the ballot in 10 states. In seven states, voters passed amendments to cement abortion rights into state constitutions: Arizona, Colorado, New York, Maryland, Missouri, Montana and Nevada. In Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota, abortion rights amendments did not pass, meaning current restrictions will remain.