Donald Trump Is Very, Very Close To Winning The American Presidential Election

It is happening.

In January of 2017, the United States of America will welcome their new President – and it could very well be the guy who boasted of committing sexual assault, described Mexicans as rapists, and called for a ban on Muslim immigration.

No outlets have yet called the election for Donald Trump (the billionaire real estate magnate who first came to prominence in the 1970s when he was sued by the Justice Department for alleged racial discrimination against black people seeking to rent from his apartments).

However, his path to victory seems almost assured, with the New York Times, as of this writing, indicating that he has a greater than 95 per cent chance of winning the presidency.

It is being forecast that the Republican candidate will capture the Electoral College, upon which the presidential race depends, but not the popular vote, which counts the raw number of ballots in his favour. The latter is expected to go to his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, who saw her popularity plummet in recent weeks with the re-emerging controversy surrounding her private email server.

Pollsters had Clinton as the favourite to win all the way up until the first results starting rolling in, but she eventually lost ground in several swing states upon which the election rested. Many of those states instead went to the candidate who claimed climate change was a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese.

One of those states was North Carolina, which provided an insight into the success of voter suppression, where a law championed by Republicans made it far more difficult for minorities to vote. (Trump’s base of supporters was largely comprised of non-college educated white men.)

Nothing is official, and no concession speeches have been conducted. In fact, there remains a slim path to victory for Clinton, if she can hold onto a couple of swing states. There is also a chance that America will go to bed not knowing the final result, with counting expected to continue for some time yet.

Nonetheless, when it became increasingly apparent that Trump would triumph, Canada’s Citizenship and Immigration website crashed – presumably from an influx of visitors.

In Australia, Trump supporters at Sydney University reportedly celebrated the ascendance of the Republican Party by chanting some of Trump's most famous catchphrases.

During a live show late on the evening of election night, Stephen Colbert remarked, “I’m not sure it’s a comedy show at this point.”

Coarse language warning, folks.

His despondency was mirrored across social media.

More news as it develops.

Photo: iStock.