Joe Biden has called for Americans to “bring down the temperature” as he addressed the US for the first time in the aftermath of Donald Trump’s sweeping election victory.

Speaking in the White House Rose Garden, the US president said: “I know for some people it is a time for victory, for others it is a time of loss… the country chooses one or the other.

“I have said many times you can’t love your country only when you win, you can’t love your neighbour only when you agree.”

US election latest: Trump to select team in days

The president said he had spoken with Mr Trump and said he has ordered his team to ensure a “peaceful and orderly transition” of power.

He said: “The people vote and choose their own leaders and they do it peacefully. In a democracy, the will of the people prevails.”

His remarks could be seen as a subtle dig at how Mr Trump refused to accept he lost the election in 2020.

The president also spoke about the “integrity of the American electoral system”, saying: “It is honest, it is fair and it is transparent. It can be trusted, win or lose.”

He concluded: “America endures. We’re going to be okay, but we need to stay engaged.”

Mr Biden’s speech was intended to highlight what he sees as his achievements, Sky News’ US correspondent Mark Stone said. With more time, those achievements may have been more clear, he added.

“I thought it was interesting that he kind of made the point, almost suggesting if we’d had a bit more time, maybe the American people would have felt the achievements that this administration has put forward,” he said.

‘We must accept the result’, Harris tells supporters

It comes after vice president Kamala Harris called Mr Trump to concede the race and congratulate him.

In a speech in Washington DC, she told her supporters she was “proud of the race we ran” but said “we must accept the result”.

Trump’s path to decisive victory

Mr Trump won a decisive victory – comfortably clearing the 270 Electoral College votes needed to secure the presidency and clinching five battleground states: North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.

He is also leading in Arizona and Nevada, which are yet to be called, according to Sky’s US partner NBC News, meaning Mr Trump is on course to claim all seven swing states.

👉 Listen to Sky News Daily on your podcast app 👈

The 78-year-old president-elect has been keeping a low profile after addressing his supporters in Florida yesterday morning to declare victory.

He is the first defeated president in over a century to return to the Oval Office and also the first convicted of a crime to win the presidency.

Mr Trump is facing several criminal and civil cases, but experts say his victory will essentially end the cases brought against him – at least while he is in the White House.

After spending his first day as president-elect receiving congratulatory phone calls from world leaders, Mr Trump will now begin the process of choosing who will be in his second White House administration before inauguration day on 20 January.

US President Joe Biden is expected to address the nation this afternoon after Donald Trump was elected as his successor in an extraordinary political comeback.

Mr Biden, who was replaced by vice president Kamala Harris as the Democrats’ presidential candidate over concerns about his mental fitness, will speak at 4pm (UK time), the White House said on Thursday.

He has already issued a statement in which he said Ms Harris “stepped up and led a historic campaign” that “embodied what’s possible when guided by a strong moral compass and a clear vision for a nation”.

US election latest: Trump to select team in days

But later today will be the first time the country will hear from the president in person.

Mr Biden called Mr Trump after his emphatic victory in the US presidential election on Wednesday.

He has also invited the man he ousted from the White House four years ago to an Oval Office meeting to prepare to return the keys.

The president and president-elect will get together in the coming weeks as the administrations begin the process of changing leader.

Ms Harris called Mr Trump to concede the election and to congratulate him last night, and told her supporters in a speech in Washington she was “proud of the race we ran” but “we must accept the result”.

Mr Trump, who has described his return to power as the start of a “golden age of America”, has been keeping a low profile after addressing supporters in Florida yesterday morning to declare victory.

The 78-year-old made history as the first defeated president in over a century to return to the Oval Office – and the first convicted criminal to win the presidency.

He is also facing other criminal and civil cases.

Experts say his election victory will essentially end the criminal cases brought against him, at least for the time he occupies the White House.

The former president refused to accept defeat four years ago, sparked a violent insurrection at the US Capitol, was convicted of felony charges and survived two assassination attempts.

The property mogul and former reality star told his supporters at his election party in Florida: “People told me that God spared me for a reason.”

He added: “This is a magnificent victory for the American people that will allow us to ‘make America great again’.”

Read more:
Trump has won – what happens now?
Who could be in Trump’s top team?
Presenter calls Trump win ‘terrible’

Against the expectations of most polls and pundits, Mr Trump surpassed 270 Electoral College votes and clinched a second term in the White House with crucial wins in five battleground states: North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin.

He is also leading in Arizona and Nevada (which are yet to called), according to Sky’s US partner NBC News, and remains on course to claim all seven swing states.

Mr Trump spent his first day as president-elect receiving congratulatory phone calls from world leaders – and will now begin the process of choosing who will be in his administration for his second stint in the White House.

He may opt to dramatically transform US foreign and domestic policy.

Mr Trump has previously said he would end Russia’s war in Ukraine if he returned to office.

He has also long criticised NATO, threatening to pull the US from the alliance.

On Thursday, NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte warned the strengthening ties between Russia and North Korea are not only a threat to European security, but also for the United States.

“I look forward to a sit down with Donald Trump to discuss how we face these threats collectively,” he said.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said she was looking forward to working with Mr Trump again to strengthen the transatlantic bond.

👉Listen to The World with Richard Engle and Yalda Hakim on your podcast app👈

Russian President Vladimir Putin has not yet commented on the outcome of US election.

However, contact between him and Mr Trump before the 20 January inauguration has not been ruled out, the Russian Interfax news agency cited the Kremlin as saying.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged Mr Trump’s win but said he had no information on whether Mr Putin planned to congratulate him.

He underlined that Russia still sees the US as an “unfriendly” country due to its support for Ukraine.

Donald Trump is preparing to pick his top team after pulling off a stunning comeback to return to the White House.

If his first term as president is anything to go by, some of those jobs could go to members of his large and in most cases politically-inexperienced family.

The president-elect has five children from three marriages – with his three sons all reported to have contributed to his 2024 campaign in some way.

Follow latest: US election live updates

In June 2023, Mr Trump said he wouldn’t want his children to serve in a second administration because “it’s too painful for the family”.

However, his critics might say that it wouldn’t be the first time he has said one thing before going on to do another.

Here we take a look at the incoming president’s family and how they might feature in the Trump White House 2.0.

Donald Trump Jr

Often nicknamed Don Jr, Mr Trump’s eldest son has become much more involved in his father’s political career than he was during his time in office between 2017 and 2021.

The 46-year-old took up a role as an adviser when his father began considering a third campaign for the White House after losing to Joe Biden in 2020.

He is said to have been helping to make sure his father understands his core voters, with a Trump aide telling CNN in 2021: “Don has the pulse of the base and knows where the energy of the party is, so he’s sort of the go-to person now on a lot of political things.”

Don Jr also advocated for incoming vice president JD Vance to become Mr Trump’s running mate in the 2024 election.

Meanwhile, his podcast Triggered is said to have become influential among his father’s supporters.

It would therefore perhaps be unsurprising if Don Jr, one of the president-elect’s three children from his first marriage to Ivana Trump, lands a relatively senior role in the next White House administration.

Eric Trump

Much like his brother, Eric frequently made appearances during his father’s 2024 election campaign.

Addressing a rally in Pennsylvania in October, three months after the assassination attempt on his father, Eric shouted: “Fight! Fight! Fight! They tried to smear us, they tried to bankrupt us, they came after us, they impeached him twice … then, guys, they tried to kill him.”

While his brother focuses on understanding voters, Eric is said to be more aligned with the Republican Party machinery.

His wife Lara Trump is the co-chair of the Republican National Committee.

Eric is also executive vice president of the Trump Organization – which serves as the holding company for all of his father’s business ventures and investments.

Clearly trusted by his father, the 40-year-old, who is the president-elect’s second child from his marriage to Ivana Trump, could also secure a role in the next White House.

Read more US election news:
‘Proud’ Harris gives concession speech
Trump has won – what happens now?
Trump’s main pledges for second term
Trump still faces criminal charges – here’s what happens next
US talk show host on verge of tears after Trump win

Ivanka Trump

One of the incoming president’s two daughters, Ivanka and her partner Jared Kushner were senior advisors in the first Trump administration.

However in November 2022, Ivanka announced she would be stepping back from politics.

Her appearance alongside her father at Palm Beach as he declared victory in the election on Wednesday was her first of the campaign.

It appears unlikely Ivanka, the third child from her father’s marriage to Ivana Trump, will be returning to the White House when the president-elect takes office in January.

Barron Trump

The 6ft 7in teenager was seen towering over his father as he declared victory in the 2024 election at a speech in Florida.

Barron, 18, is the only child of the incoming president and his current wife Melania Trump.

The teenager reportedly advised his father to go on high-profile podcasts, such as The Joe Rogan Experience, during the 2024 campaign.

He is currently studying at New York University, and there have been reports he wants to follow in his father’s footsteps by going into politics.

However, it may be a bit too early for him to do so just yet.

Tiffany Trump

The 31-year-old, who is the only child from Mr Trump’s marriage to Marla Maples, supports her father’s politics and celebrated his win.

However, there is no suggestion Tiffany, who graduated from the Georgetown University Law Centre in 2020, will form part of his team or enter politics as a career.

Melania Trump

The former first lady will know what to expect as she prepares for another four years in the White House.

Mary Jordan, a Washington Post journalist and author of a book about Melania, has said she was like a “deer in the headlights” during the first term but could be a greater force the second time around.

Speaking to the i news website she said: “Melania will know more this time, she will have more experience, she will be wiser.

“Last time she was in the midst of a big feud with Ivanka who took some of the positions for the first lady – it was chaos… This time she will be wiser and have better people around her, hopefully people that won’t let her wear jackets with rude things on the back.”

The comment refers to a time when Melania wore a coat saying “I really don’t care, do you?” as she travelled to a migrant children’s shelter.

During Mr Trump’s first term in office, the 54-year-old compared living in the White House to being in a Venezuelan prison.

Whether she will enjoy it more this time, and play a bigger role in the Trump administration, remains to be seen.

Kai Trump

The 17-year-old, who is the daughter of Don Jr, has become a social media star thanks to her speeches in praise of her grandfather.

However, it may be a bit too early for her to join his top team in the next White House administration.