- Trump’s dramatic victory is once again likely to trigger a major shift away from US foreign policy and economic orthodoxy.
Donald Trump has declared victory over Kamala Harris in the US presidential election after making major gains in swing states across the nation and securing what he called an “unprecedented and powerful mandate” from the electorate.
“I want to thank the American people for the extraordinary honour of being elected your 47th president and your 45th president, and every citizen, I will fight for you, for your family and your future…America’s future will be better, bolder, richer, stronger than ever before,” he told cheering supporters at a victory rally in Florida after victories in the crucial states of Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia.
Trump’s dramatic victory – he is only the second President in history to win non-consecutive terms – is once again likely to trigger a major shift away from US foreign policy and economic orthodoxy, as well as a decisive break with the policies of predecessor Joe Biden.
During a bitterly divisive campaign marked by assassination attempts, insults and dark rhetoric, Trump pledged to reintroduce the ‘America First’ agenda that defined his first term, including tariffs on foreign imports in a bid to boost US manufacturing and an end to illegal migration which he often cast in existential terms.
While details remain vague, Trump has in recent months floated plans for 60% tariffs on imports from China, 20% on imports from the rest of the world, and potentially even 100% on imports from countries threatening to ditch the dollar as the global reserve currency.
Africa braces for Trump’s return
For Africa, Trump’s stunning comeback is likely to mark a return to the dramatic and unpredictable statesmanship of his first term.
The former president’s first term was marred by labelling some African countries as “sh*tholes”. His attempts to limit Muslim immigration into the US discriminated against several African nations, and he didn’t visit the continent during his first term in office.
Yet his apparent disinterest in Africa – he also failed to fill several important ambassadorial posts on the continent – obscured some significant decisions. Trump prioritised commercial ties with the continent and launched the Development Finance Corporation (DFC), an emerging markets development bank with a lending capacity of $60bn which has since invested more than $10bn across Sub-Saharan Africa in key sectors such as infrastructure, women’s economic empowerment, healthcare, and agriculture.
The return of his transactional approach may please some African leaders, even while his rhetoric on tariffs leads others to fear for the impact on global economic growth.
Others may also welcome his repeated insistence that he can broker a diplomatic agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine – a conflict which has wrought substantial negative economic impacts on Africa by disrupting food and fertiliser supplies to the continent.
Clayson Monyela, South Africa’s head of public diplomacy, was among the first to congratulate Trump on his win.
“I’ll leave it to my seniors but congratulations are in order for the President-elect…. Historically relations between South Africa & the US thrive under a Republican White House,” he tweeted.
