5 surprising takeaways from Trump’s election victory

On the heels of President-elect Donald Trump's historic 2024 election victory, The Washington Times' Susan Ferrechio detailed how the former president achieved what many considered impossible: a decisive win over Vice President Kamala Harris that reshaped America's political landscape. From shocking electoral margins to unexpected alliances, the election results revealed several surprising developments that signal a significant shift in American politics. Here are five surprising takeaways that Ms. Ferrechio points out about this "political earthquake."

Defying pollster predictions

In a stunning rebuke to polling expectations, Mr. Trump's victory "upended" political forecasts. Pennsylvania serves as the most striking example - pollsters had declared the state deadlocked just one day before the election, yet Mr. Trump won by an overwhelming margin of nearly 140,000 votes. This represents yet another major polling miss in predicting his electoral performance.

"Listen, they are going to blame this on Harris. She wasn't a perfect candidate, but let's be honest, she probably did as well as she could," explained Rasmussen Reports pollster Mark Mitchell. "She saved Democrats from an even bigger R landslide. Biden and the Democrats made this mess."

Unprecedented inroads in blue territory

Perhaps most shocking was Mr. Trump's performance in traditionally Democratic strongholds. The margin in New Jersey - losing by only 4 percentage points in a reliably blue state - signals an unexpected shift in electoral dynamics. The flipping of Miami-Dade County in Florida, historically a Democratic bastion, further demonstrates Mr. Trump's surprising ability to compete in previously unfavorable territory.

Former GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy declared the results as "unthinkable in March 2023. Now it's reality."

McConnell's reaction

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell , a longtime critic of the president-elect, demonstrated the continued shift in Republican unity with his praise of the victory. "What he's accomplished has not been done since Grover Cleveland," he said, while complimenting Mr. Trump's campaign "for running a sharper operation this time."

Market's response

While markets often react cautiously to political changes, the response to the president-elect's victory was anything but restrained . The stock market's surge of 1,508 points to a record high of 43,730 demonstrates a remarkably strong vote of confidence from the financial sector when it comes to Mr. Trump's promised economic agenda, including tax cuts and deregulation.

A unifying moment?

Even in victory, there were signs of potential healing in a divided nation. Per spokesman Steven Cheung, "President Trump acknowledged Vice President Harris on her strength, professionalism and tenacity throughout the campaign, and both leaders agreed on the importance of unifying the country."

Mr. Trump also drew a prompt invitation from President Biden for a White House transition meeting. In his remarks at the White House on Thursday, Mr. Biden called for Americans to come together. "Something I hope we can do, no matter who you voted for, is see each other not as adversaries, but as fellow Americans. Bring down the temperature," he said.

And of course, the absence of legal challenges and extended vote-counting periods marks a surprising departure from recent electoral history.