US election: First results from Kentucky and Indiana suggest Donald Trump support is still strong
Both of the earliest states are strongly Republican, but the vote shares offer an early insight into how votes are working out
The first results from the US election are showing that Donald Trump's support is staying strong.
Initial indications from Kentucky show that the Republican candidate is dominating the voting in that state, with 79 per cent of the ballots yet counted.
Only 1 per cent of the vote is in so far, and the state was always likely to support Donald Trump. But the results show that Mr Trump's support is still holding strong.
Kentucky was one of the first states to close at 6pm eastern time and is likely to be one of the first to declare its results. It is almost certain that voters there will back Donald Trump, but the margin of victory might prove a useful way of understanding the support he is generating across the country.
The results may change over time, since so small a proportion of the electorate has voted so far.
Similar results were seen in Indiana, with early votes showing strong results for Mr Trump. But that state too was always expected to be won by the Republicans – not only has it historically supported the party, it is the home state of Mike Pence, Mr Trump's running mate and Indiana's governor.
Donald Trump sounds confident as Election Day gets underway across the US.
“We’re going to win a lot of states,” Mr Trump told Fox News Tuesday morning. “Who knows what happens ultimately?”
He said that he expects to do "very well" in key battleground states like Ohio, Florida, and North Carolina.
Still, he launched into a familiar cry that the polling is slanted in Ms Clinton's favour, to paint a misleading picture throughout the election.
"I do think a lot of the polls are purposely wrong," he said. "I don't even think they interview people, I think they just put out phony numbers."
Mr Trump is expected to cast his vote in Manhattan any moment.
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Donald Trump has arrived at his polling place, PS 59, in Midtown Manhattan to cast his vote.
The Republican governor of Massachusetts, Charlie Baker, made perhaps the easiest – or toughest – decision of the US election. When he came out of the voting booth, he revealed that he chose neither candidate for president.
First time in my life I haven't voted for the president," Mr Baker told WCVB, "and I'm obviously disappointed by that."
He added: "I said many months ago that I wouldn't be able to support Donald Trump for a number of reasons, and I thought Hillary Clinton had believability problems and nothing has happened in the last nine months to change my mind on that."
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While taking a moment to consider his options while in the voting booth, Donald Trump finally cast his ballot.
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More than 6.4 million voters made it to the poles between 24 October and 6 November – surpassing the 5,963,110 ballots cast in the controversial 2000 election between George W Bush and then-Vice President Al Gore.
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