2016 US Presidential Election - Electoral College Seals Donald Trump White House Win Monday Dec 19,2016

America's Electoral College on Monday Dec 19,2016 confirmed Donald Trump's election as the 45th president of the United States, unswayed by a desperate bid by die-hard opponents to bar the Republican's path to the White House.

Six weeks after his upset victory over the Democrat Hillary Clinton, Trump sailed as expected past the 270 votes needed to make his victory official according to US media, clearing the way for him to succeed Barack Obama on January 20,2017

"We did it!" the 70-year-old billionaire tweeted after the results came in. "Thank you to all of my great supporters, we just officially won the election (despite all of the distorted and inaccurate media)."

In a statement released by his team, the president-elect welcomed the "overwhelming vote" in his favor, while reaching out to the Democrats who sought against the odds to block him.

"With this historic step we can look forward to the bright future ahead," he said. "I will work hard to unite our country and be the president of all Americans."

Under normal circumstances, the college vote is a little-watched, rubber stamp formality in which electors -- most of them party members -- officially cast ballots for the candidate that won the popular tally in their state.
This time, however, the divisive nature of the campaign, Trump's provocative personality, and Clinton's lead of nearly three million votes in the popular tally combined to raise the stakes.

The Electoral College vote works like this: when US voters cast ballots on November 8,2016  they did not directly elect the president but rather 538 electors charged with translating their wishes into reality.

The final vote result will be formally announced in the US Congress on January 6, 2017 two weeks before the next president is to be inaugurated.