Donald Trump appeared to quickly take a lead over his presidential rival Kamala Harris as polls closed in all American states.

The Republican candidate surged ahead in the early hours of the race, with victories projected in solidly red states including Florida, Texas and Alabama, outnumbering Ms. Harris’ victories in Democratic strongholds , notably New York and Illinois.

As the night wore on, Mr. Trump remained in the lead, particularly with voters in rural America. Meanwhile, Ms Harris’s vote was strengthened as voting ended on the West Coast and California was called for her.

There haven’t been any major surprises in the election so far, but crucial states like Georgia, Pennsylvania and North Carolina have yet to be called and could tip the scales in the race to the presidency of the United States.

This neck-and-neck race will have a huge impact on global politics, including in the UK, where Sir Keir Starmer’s government may face upheaval in the US approach to security and defense if M .Trump wins.

Seven states are considered swing states in this year’s elections, including Nevada, Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin.

If the voting results follow the Associated Press predictions, Mr. Trump will have received 214 votes in the electoral college, and Ms. Harris 179 in the states currently called.

According to the American electoral system, a total of 270 college votes are needed to win the presidency.

The election went largely smoothly in the United States, despite some voters suffering delays in casting their ballots and a series of what the FBI described as threats to non-credible bomb.

The economy – and reducing inflation – is a key issue for Americans, according to exit polls, but other areas of concern for voters include immigration, protecting democracy and the right to abortion.

As they participate in the presidential vote, 10 states in the United States are also voting on whether or not to enshrine the right to abortion into law.

In Florida, efforts to amend the state constitution to add abortion rights failed, but New Yorkers voted in favor of a similar amendment.

Concerns about the future of American democracy emerged largely following Mr. Trump’s attempts to overturn his 2020 defeat and the actions of his angry supporters in January 2021, who stormed the Capitol building in Washington DC.

Mr. Trump said Tuesday that he did not plan to tell his supporters to refrain from violence if Ms. Harris won, because they “are not violent people.”

The British government has been working hard to win over Mr Trump in case he is re-elected, after a transatlantic row in recent weeks over Labor Party volunteers traveling to the United States to campaign for his rival.

Sir Keir is expected to closely monitor the US election results, but his official spokesman did not say whether the Prime Minister would stay up all night to watch the results.

Some Cabinet ministers have in the past made scathing criticism of Mr Trump while Labor was in opposition, including Health Secretary Wes Streeting.

Despite once describing Mr Trump as an “obnoxious little man” in a social media post, Mr Streeting insisted “there will be a very good working relationship” if he is elected.

The Republican nominee would likely chart a new course for the United States in major conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, areas in which Sir Keir has largely followed the lead of US President Joe Biden.

Former Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson expressed concerns about what the result could mean for world affairs, telling Channel 4 News: “What really worries me at the moment is Ukraine and the the future of democracy in this country.

“I think that whatever happens in these elections, there is a risk that there will be a disaster in Ukraine.”

In central London, Democratic supporters living in the United Kingdom seemed convinced that their efforts to “get out the vote” of Americans abroad were “second to none.”

Democrats Abroad UK chairwoman Kristin Wolfe told PA: “This is happening all over the world – we are getting overseas voters to vote.

“We’re going to win this thing.”

The chairman of the UK Republicans Overseas group, Greg Swenson, told the PA news agency there was “considerable optimism” about a Trump victory.

Mr. Swenson added: “For the first time, we adopted mail-in voting and early voting and it paid off.

“It’s still too close to determine, but we believe voters will choose prosperity and security based on common sense over the negative consequences of the left’s radical progressive agenda.”