On November 8, 2016, Americans elected Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States. Trump's victory over former secretary of state Hillary Clinton shocked the world and caused financial markets to fall. In the last few weeks before the historic election, many polls and political analysts had suggested that the Republican candidate, who had no previous experience in government, had little chance of beating his highly experienced opponent. Trump surprised everyone, including his own party members, by winning a number of key swing states that were required to win the election.