Donald Trump wins Arizona as US House moves closer to Republican control – US politics live | US politics

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Donald Trump’s former Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, said he will not seek to join the president-elect’s new administration but is ready to offer advice to his successor, including on how to strengthen sanctions on Iran and Russia and contain the growth of US debt, reports Reuters.

In an interview, Mnuchin told Reuters it was important for the Treasury to work towards strengthening US trade policy. This includes holding Beijing to its US goods purchase commitments in Trump’s January 2020 Phase One deal to rebalance US-China trade, which he said “they’re not living up to.”

Serving as Treasury chief during Trump’s first term “was the experience of a lifetime, and I’m happy to advise on the outside,” Mnuchin said on Friday. “I’m sure they’ll have a lot of great choices.” He declined to name any favourites.

Reuters reported on Friday that two prominent hedge fund investors, Scott Bessent, founder of Key Square Group, and John Paulson had emerged as the top contenders for Treasury secretary, and that Bessent had met Trump.

Mnuchin founded Liberty Strategic Capital, a private equity firm, after leaving office with investments from Softbank Group and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala sovereign wealth fund.

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Maya Yang

A senior adviser to Donald Trump said that the incoming US administration’s priority for Ukraine will be achieving peace rather than helping it regain territory captured by Russia in the almost three years of the war.

In an interview with the BBC, broadcast on Saturday, Bryan Lanza, who has been a political adviser to Trump since his 2016 presidential campaign, began to elaborate on the strong signals the now president-elect had been sending to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on the campaign trail.

Lanza said:

When Zelenskyy says we will only stop this fighting, there will only be peace, once Crimea is returned, we’ve got news for President Zelenskyy: Crimea is gone.”

A spokesperson for Trump’s presidential transition effort said later on Saturday that Lanza had not been speaking on behalf of the president-elect.

Trump’s transition effort is currently vetting personnel and drafting the policies that Trump could adopt during his second term.

“Bryan Lanza was a contractor for the campaign. He does not work for President Trump and does not speak for him,” said the spokesperson, who declined to be named.

During the election campaign, Trump said he would find a solution to end the war “within a day”, but did not explain how he would do so.

Russia is open to hearing Donald Trump’s proposals on ending the war, an official said on Saturday. Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, said Moscow and Washington were “exchanging signals” on Ukraine via “closed channels”, according to the AP. He did not specify whether the communication was with the current administration or Trump and members of his incoming administration.

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UK minister says using Nigel Farage as link to Trump is ‘unlikely’

A British minister said on Sunday that the government is unlikely to ask the Reform party leader Nigel Farage to act as an intermediary to deal with US president-elect Donald Trump.

Farage is a friend of Trump and was at his election victory party in Florida. He has offered to act as an interlocutor between the UK government and the Trump administration, which takes power in January.

The Treasury minister, Darren Jones, said on Sunday that the government would probably reject that offer, reports the PA news agency.

“I think that’s probably unlikely,” he told Sky News, saying Farage, who is a member of the UK parliament, should probably spend his time with his constituents rather than in the US.

Farage said at the weekend he has “a great relationship” with Trump and would be willing to act as an intermediary for the government because it is in the national interest.

Governments around the world are trying to figure out how to deal with Trump, who has promised to increase tariffs and whose first four-year term was characterized by a protectionist trade policy and isolationist rhetoric, including threats to withdraw from Nato.

UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, delayed starting a recruitment process for a new ambassador to Washington until the result of the US election was known. The role will be crucial in the coming years in navigating the UK’s relationship with the Trump administration.

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Here is a video report on the protests against Donald Trump in New York and Washington DC mentioned earlier:

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Anti-Trump protests erupt across US on Saturday from New York City to Seattle

Maya Yang

Protests against Donald Trump erupted in the US on Saturday as people on both coasts took to the streets in frustration about his re-election.

Thousands of people in major cities including New York City and Seattle demonstrated against the former president and now president-elect amid his threats against reproductive rights and pledges to carry out mass deportations at the start of his upcoming presidency.

In New York City on Saturday, demonstrators from advocacy groups focused on workers’ rights and immigrant justice crowded outside Trump International Hotel and Tower on 5th Avenue holding signs that read: “We protect us” and “Mr President, how long must women wait for liberty?” Others held signs that read: “We won’t back down” while chanting: “Here we are and we’re not leaving!”

Similar protests took place in Washington DC, where Women’s March participants demonstrated outside the Heritage Foundation, the rightwing thinktank behind Project 2025. Pictures posted on social media on Saturday showed demonstrators holding signs that read: “Well-behaved women don’t make history” and “You are never alone”. Demonstrators also chanted: “We believe that we will win!” and held other signs that read: “Where’s my liberty when I have no choice?”

Crowds of demonstrators also gathered outside Seattle’s Space Needle on Saturday. “March and rally to protest Trump and the two-party war machine,” posters for the protests said, adding: “Build the people’s movement and fight war, repression and genocide!” Speaking to a crowd of demonstrators, some of whom dressed in raincoats while others wore keffiyehs in solidarity with Palestinians amid Israel’s deadly war on Gaza, one demonstrator said: “Any president that has come to power has also let workers down.”

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Updated at 05.52 EST

More on Murphy’s comments today. The governor of New Jersey suggests his “gut” is telling him Trump could not pursue tariffs “against allies like the UK”.

According to the PA news agency, Murphy told Sky News Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips:

Do I believe it? I’m not sure. I think if you and I were sitting and speaking about the People’s Republic of China, I’d believe it.”

He added:

I don’t know that that makes sense – or even that he would pursue it against allies like the UK. My gut tells me no, but if I’m China, I’m fastening my seatbelt right now.”

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The governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy, said he thinks president-elect Donald Trump may look favourably on the UK choosing to leave the “bureaucratic blob” of the EU, reports the Press Association (PA).

Asked about trade, the Democratic politician told the Sky News Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips program:

I have a gut feeling that he looks at the UK’s move out of the European Union which, by the way, I have to say was a huge mistake from my perspective.

But from his perspective, I think it’s, ‘you know what? These guys had the courage to pull out of this big bureaucratic blob. And I, Donald Trump, have some sympathy with the renegade who has courage’.

I think there’s some of that. I think that’s a card that can be played, and we’ll see.”

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Callum Jones

Scrambling to construct an administration in the wake of his shock victory eight years ago, Donald Trump looked far beyond his inner circle, and those who ardently embraced his agenda. Not this time.

The president-elect has charged Howard Lutnick, a longtime friend, and one of the few high-profile figures in corporate America to vocally endorse his campaign, with recruiting officials who will deliver, rather than dilute, his agenda.

The CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, and co-chair of Trump’s transition team, has made no secret of his plan to stack the new White House with loyalists – and keep out anyone who threatens to derail his pledges.

Last time around, Trump “picked unfortunately”, Lutnick told NewsNation last month, describing the hires he made in his first term as “freshman” mistakes. “He’s the CEO. Why would you pick someone who’s going to try to go the other direction? That would be silly.”

Lutnick, who says he talks to Trump every day, was on the sidelines in 2016 and 2020 when his friend won and lost the presidency. In 2024, he went all in – raising millions of dollars and loudly making the case for his ally’s political comeback

Trump “is going to build the greatest team to ever walk into government”, Lutnick declared to a triumphant crowd at Madison Square Garden last month, with nine days left of the campaign. As transition co-chair, he is in charge of that construction.

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Trump says Haley and Pompeo will not join second administration

President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday that former Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley and former secretary of state Mike Pompeo will not be asked to join his administration, reports Reuters.

“I will not be inviting former ambassador Nikki Haley, or former secretary of state Mike Pompeo, to join the Trump administration, which is currently in formation,” Trump posted on social media. “I very much enjoyed and appreciated working with them previously, and would like to thank them for their service to our country.”

Trump is meeting with potential candidates to serve in his administration before his 20 January inauguration as president. Reuters reported on Friday that Trump met prominent investor Scott Bessent, who is a potential US Treasury secretary nominee.

Haley, a former South Carolina governor who served as US ambassador to the United Nations under Trump, endorsed Trump for president despite having criticized him harshly when she ran against him in the party primaries, reports Reuters.

“I was proud to work with President Trump defending America at the United Nations,” Haley wrote on X. “I wish him, and all who serve, great success in moving us forward to a stronger, safer America over the next four years.”

I was proud to work with President Trump defending America at the United Nations. I wish him, and all who serve, great success in moving us forward to a stronger, safer America over the next four years. pic.twitter.com/6PhWN6xn1B

— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) November 10, 2024

Pompeo, who also served as director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) under Trump, had been mentioned in some media reports as a possible defense secretary and was also seen as a potential Republican presidential candidate, before he announced in April 2023 he would not run.

Pompeo could not immediately be reached for comment on Saturday, according to Reuters.

Separately, Trump said the 2025 presidential inauguration will be co-chaired by real estate investor and campaign donor Steve Witkoff and former Senator Kelly Loeffler.

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You can explore the US election results and maps below with our live tracker. It has breakdowns of votes by state here:

And the House, Senate and governor elections map and results can be found here:

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Updated at 04.26 EST

The Associated Press (AP) reports that three other US House races in Arizona were too early to call on Saturday, most notably the first and sixth congressional districts.

Republican David Schweikert is seeking an eighth term in the affluent first congressional district that includes north Phoenix, Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and Paradise Valley. His challenger is Democratic former state representative Amish Shah.

The sixth congressional district race pits Republican Juan Ciscomani against Democrat Kirsten Engel, whom he narrowly beat two years ago. The district runs from Tucson east to the New Mexico state line and includes a stretch of the Arizona-Mexico border.

The US Senate race in Arizona between Democratic Ruben Gallego, an Iraq War veteran, and Republican Kari Lake, a well-known former television news anchor and staunch Donald Trump ally, also remained too early to call on Saturday according to AP.

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Republican US representative Eli Crane wins second term in vast Arizona congressional district

Republican US representative Eli Crane won reelection in a Republican-leaning congressional district covering vast swaths of rural Arizona, reports the Associated Press (AP).

Crane faced Democrat Jonathan Nez, the former Navajo Nation president, in the second district race. Nez was vying to become the first Native American to represent Arizona in Congress.

In a statement late Saturday, Crane commended Nez for entering the race and thanked voters. Crane wrote:

I will continue using every tool in my arsenal to fight against the corruption and selfish interests of the DC elites to put rural Arizonans FIRST.

I’m laser-focused on working with President Trump to lower inflation, secure the border and return to peace through strength.”

The district covers much of north-eastern Arizona and dips south to the northern Tucson suburbs.

Nez said in a statement late on Saturday that he called Crane to congratulate him on a hard-fought victory. “Although we didn’t get the outcome we hoped for, the work we began together is not over,” Nez wrote.

Crane, a former Navy Seal who served in the military for 13 years, is a member of the far-right House Freedom Caucus and a staunch ally of president-elect Donald Trump, who won Arizona. Crane was among eight US House Republicans nationally who voted to oust Kevin McCarthy as House speaker in 2023.

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Updated at 04.12 EST

Trump wins Arizona, completing sweep of all seven battleground states, AP declares

Donald Trump won the presidential election in Arizona, the Associated Press (AP) declared on Saturday, completing a clean sweep of all seven battleground states and locking in a decisive electoral college victory over the Democratic vice-president, Kamala Harris.

Trump, who had secured the 270 electoral college votes needed to win the White House by early Wednesday, now has what is expected to be a final total of 312 votes to Harris’ 226.

The win returned the state to the Republican column after Joe Biden’s 2020 victory and marked Trump’s second victory in Arizona since 2016. Trump had campaigned on border security and the economy, tying Harris to inflation and record illegal border crossings during Biden’s administration.

Trump has also won the swing states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Wisconsin and Nevada. In 2020, Biden defeated Trump by winning six of the seven swing states – he narrowly lost North Carolina – and won 306 electoral college votes to Trump’s 232.

Trump also won 306 in his 2016 victory over Hillary Clinton.

The Ap said Trump has won 74.6m votes nationwide, or 50.5%, to Harris’ 70.9m, or 48%.

Meanwhile, Republican US representative Eli Crane won reelection to a US House seat representing Arizona’s second congressional district. The freshman lawmaker defeated former Navajo Nation president, Jonathan Nez, who was vying to become the state’s first Native American representative.

In a statement late on Saturday, Crane commended Nez for entering the race and thanked voters.

More on that in a moment, but first, here are the latest developments in US politics:

Protests against Trump erupted in the US on Saturday as people on both coasts took to the streets in frustration about his re-election. Thousands of people in major cities including New York City and Seattle demonstrated against the former president and now president-elect amid his threats against reproductive rights and pledges to carry out mass deportations at the start of his upcoming presidency.

Biden and Trump will meet on Wednesday in the Oval Office, the White House announced on Saturday. “At President Biden’s invitation, President Biden and president-elect Trump will meet in the Oval Office on Wednesday,” the press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, said in a statement.

Republicans on Saturday appeared close to clinching control of the US House of Representatives, a critical element for Trump to advance his agenda when the president-elect returns to the White House in January. The AP reported that three US House races in Arizona were too early to call on Saturday, most notably the first and sixth congressional districts.

The president-elect has charged Howard Lutnick, a longtime friend, and one of the few high-profile figures in corporate America to vocally endorse his campaign, with recruiting officials who will deliver, rather than dilute, his agenda. The CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, and co-chair of Trump’s transition team, has made no secret of his plan to stack the new White House with loyalists – and keep out anyone who threatens to derail his pledges.

A senior adviser to Trump said that the incoming US administration’s priority for Ukraine will be achieving peace rather than helping it regain territory captured by Russia in the almost three years of the war. In an interview with the BBC, broadcast on Saturday, Bryan Lanza, who has been a political adviser to Trump since his 2016 presidential campaign, said: “When Zelenskyy says we will only stop this fighting, there will only be peace, once Crimea is returned, we’ve got news for President Zelenskyy: Crimea is gone.”

An employee at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema) has been fired from her job and is being investigated because she told a disaster relief team she was directing in Florida after Hurricane Milton to avoid homes displaying election campaign signs supporting Trump, conduct that the agency head on Saturday called “reprehensible”.

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