Republican flag-bearer Donald Trump won the US presidential election on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported, amid expectations that his victory could reorient America's approach to the alliance with South Korea, North Korea's military threats, trade and other key foreign policy issues.

Former President Trump crossed the Electoral College threshold of 270 votes as he clinched victories in key battleground states, including Pennsylvania, Georgia and North Carolina, in the general election showdown against Vice President Kamala Harris.

His triumph marked a stunning political comeback that followed two attempts on his life, a felony conviction in a "hush money" trial, nagging questions over his alleged role in the Jan. 6 attack on Capitol Hill and a defeat in the Oval Office race four years ago.

Trump emerged victorious after he and Harris had been caught in an extremely tight race that highlighted the United States' deep national polarization. Trump and his vice presidential running mate J.D. Vance are to take office on Jan. 20.

Shortly before the race was called for him, Trump declared a "magnificent" victory in the election and called for national unity.

"It's a political victory that our country has never seen before, nothing like this," he told a cheering crowd of supporters. "I want to thank the American people for the extraordinary honor of being elected your 47th president and your 45th president."

He also stressed that he will be fighting for Americans and will not rest until a "strong, safe and prosperous" America is delivered.

"This will truly be the golden age of America," he said.

He stressed the need for people to be united after a bruising campaign period.

"It's time to put the divisions of the past four years behind us. It's time to unite," he said, claiming that America's future will be "bigger, better, bolder, richer, safer and stronger."

Trump will be only the second president to serve non-consecutive terms after Grover Cleveland, a Democrat who was elected president in 1884, defeated by Republican rival Benjamin Harrison in 1888 and reelected four years later.

During his campaign, he has tied Harris to unpopular aspects of President Joe Biden's policy, tapping into public anxieties about still-high prices, illegal immigrants and a series of geopolitical and security challenges, including Russia's war in Ukraine, North Korea's nuclear threats and deepening instability in the Middle East.

His much-trumpeted slogan of "Make America Great Again" had resonated through his rallies in key battleground states, while his pledge to bring factories back to the United States under his "manufacturing renaissance" vision also struck a chord with American workers.

South Korea has been carefully watching developments in the US election as a new occupant of the White House could bring a shift in America's foreign policy that affects the Seoul-Washington alliance as well as the way Washington handles Pyongyang's evolving nuclear and missile threats.

Once back into the Oval Office, Trump is expected to highlight his "America First" credo that is expected to put pressure on allies and partners to take greater responsibilities for their own security and curtail America's costly involvement overseas. (Yonhap)