Mixed reaction to Trump's victory from NI politicians

There has been a mixed reaction to the election of Donald Trump as US president by political leaders in Northern Ireland.

The former president was elected for his second non-consecutive term in the White House after defeating current vice-president Kamala Harris.

DUP leader Gavin Robinson congratulated Mr Trump.

"Elections can be divisive, as this election has been, but the conclusion has been decisive," he said.

"The American people have given a strong mandate to President Trump to serve as the 47th president. I congratulate him, the vice-president elect JD Vance, and their team for achieving what has rightly been described as the greatest political comeback of all time.

UUP leader Mike Nesbitt also congratulated President Trump.

He said: "With America preparing to celebrate the 250th anniversary of its independence in 2026, there is a unique opportunity for the President-elect to celebrate, considering his family ties, the profound contribution people from these islands made to shaping the United States, particularly through the two massive waves of immigration from this island, by the Ulster Scots in the 1600s and what became the Irish Americans in the 1800s."

However SDLP leader Claire Hanna said there is "serious concern" about what Mr Trump's election will mean for the US.

Her party collegue Matthew O'Toole told us it has created a "sense of anxiety and frustration."

TUV leader Jim Allister said however that he believes Mr Trump had been the better candidate.

First Minister Michelle O'Neill told reporters she sends her regards to the incoming President: "The American people have voted... I wish him well in his new role and also my priority when it comes to engaging with the American administration, as it always has been, is the role they play in terms of our own peace process here in particular in protection of the Good Friday Agreement."