Eight years ago, the Republican Party candidate Donald Trump won the US presidential election for the first time.
It was easy then to describe Trump's victory as 'narrow'. There was even an opportunity to call that victory an 'unexpected' success.
But these words are not applicable in the case of Trump's victory.
Trump was defeated by Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden in the 2020 US presidential election. But he raised false allegations of election fraud.
At the instigation of Trump, his radical supporters carried out a bloody attack on the US Congress building (Capitol Hill) on January 6, 2021.
Later, there were multiple criminal cases against Trump. He was even convicted in a criminal case.
Despite all this, Trump won a clear victory in this year's US presidential election. Not only that, but he won five out of seven swing states. He is on course to win the remaining two, the results of which are yet to be announced.
In this election, Trump has increased his support in every corner of the United States. Even his support among almost every demographic has been seen to increase this time.
If the results of the 2020 and 2024 elections are compared, the electoral map will be covered in 'red' color (Republican).
According to New York Times estimates, Trump is the first Republican presidential candidate in 20 years to win the popular vote.
But at the same time, it must be said that the magnitude of Trump's victory should not be exaggerated. Because, this is not a landslide victory.
In the United States, it is not unusual for a candidate to win by a percentage point or two in the national popular vote.
Again, it is not rare for a candidate to win with around 312 Electoral College votes.
Trump's victory this year is not as big as the "modest" victory of Democrat Barack Obama in 2012.
Obama won the 2008 election for the first time by calling for change.
Similarly, another Democrat, Bill Clinton, won the 1992 election by calling for change. Trump could not do better than the two candidates who won these two elections (Obama and Clinton). Rather, he is far behind in this regard.
But what is noteworthy is that Trump is not an ordinary presidential candidate. As a result, there is a lot of practice about his modest victory.
Trump is a convicted felon by court. He lost the 2020 elections and wanted to reverse the results. For that he did various activities.
Considering these aspects, Trump was not generally considered a 'viable' presidential candidate. But in reality, Trump was not only a viable candidate, he won convincingly.
Despite Trump winning the election, most voters see him as an 'unlikable' candidate.
According to CNN's exit poll, only 44 percent of voters have a favorable view of Trump. On the other hand, 54 percent of voters have an unfavorable view of Trump.
A majority of voters (55 percent) say Trump's views are too extreme.
But it's clear that there are many aspects to Trump's appeal among voters that simple poll questions don't capture.
But Trump's victory may explain a lot about the state of the Democrats. Again, the desire for change in the American public can give an idea about that. In that context, the role of individual Trump in winning the election is not important.
After all, on paper the Democrats were in no position to win this election.
When a president's approval rating hits rock bottom in the United States, there is no history of a candidate from the ruling party winning the election and moving into the White House. And when many Americans think that the country is headed in the wrong direction under the leadership of the ruling party, there is still no precedent for that party's candidate to win.
The signs of American voters being bitterly angry with the Democrats were everywhere.
President Biden initially wanted to run for re-election himself. But later he had to step down. His vice president, Kamala Harris, became a candidate in place of Biden. Democrats thought American voters were so fed up with Trump that they would downplay the incumbent's mistakes.
On the other hand, there were signs everywhere that Republicans were gaining strength. Accusations were piling up against Trump. He was even convicted in a criminal case. Still, Trump's popularity was rising in the polls.
Republican voter registration numbers were soaring. Trump's support was also growing among young, black and Hispanic voters. However, these groups have historically been considered staunchly anti-Trump.
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