To win the race for the White House
Donald Trump or Joe Biden had to reach 270 electoral college votes.

Each state has a different number of votes up for grabs, depending on how many people live there. Most states almost always vote Republican or Democrat - which is why the dozen swing states are so important.

Scroll down to see how the votes stacked up - and how the race to 270 was won.

8.49pm (ET) / 1.49am (GMT)

Early results and the first projections all followed the form guide, with Donald Trump taking traditional Republican states like Indiana and Oklahoma, while Joe Biden picked up those along the east coast.

10.40pm (ET) / 3.40am (GMT)

Donald Trump is the first to pass 100 Electoral College votes, though no surprising results have been called yet. A pattern starts emerging that the vote for both candidates is up from 2016 levels. The election looked seriously tight.

11.58pm (ET) / 4.58am (GMT)

Just before midnight on the east coast, the first battleground call comes in. Donald Trump holds Ohio - and did so by growing his vote. It was a big blow for Joe Biden. The last time a Democrat won the presidency without the state was JFK in 1960.

12.41am (ET) / 5.41am (GMT)

An hour later and a big result comes through in Florida, with Mr Trump holding the crucial sunshine state. At this stage it seems he is seriously outperforming pollsters' expectations and the election could swing his way.

1.35am (ET) / 6.35am (GMT)

Another battleground followed for the president as he held Texas, but there was some good news for Joe Biden as he held on to Minnesota. With 39 states down, there was no change from the 2016 result.

2.27pm (ET) / 7.27pm (GMT)

It was deep into the day after the election that we saw the first state flipped. Wisconsin was won by Joe Biden - the first step in the rebuilding of the 'blue wall' in the midwest rust belt.

4.28pm (ET) / 9.28pm (GMT)

Two hours later and Mr Biden had cemented that wall with victory in Michigan. As Democrat confidence grew, the Trump team began the legal fightback with threats of challenges to results in key states.

Saturday Nov 7 11:26pm (ET) / 4.26pm (GMT)

The winning moment finally came three days and 16 hours after the polls closed. The count in Pennsylvania swung dramatically from Mr Trump to Mr Biden, and while the incumbent is not accepting the result, it was enough to secure Mr Biden victory.

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Matt Simpson, Digital Art Director
Megan Watkinson, Junior Designer
Jenai Edwards, Designer