Asia and the Trump administration 2.0

US-China relations and, more immediately, the people chosen to execute the president's policies will be key to how regional countries will be affected by Trump's comeback.

- Chan Heng Chee

In this century, no election has been followed as intently throughout the world as the US presidential election of 2024. That it was so closely watched affirms, like it or not, that the United States is the decisive power globally, and can profoundly impact the direction of war and peace, alliances and partnerships, trade and investment, climate change and global governance. The choice for the American people was between two candidates, two different world views and who connected better with voters and their primary concerns.

Donald Trump reiterated his America First policy of the 2016 campaign and highlighted immigration and the economy as key issues. He repeatedly asked the voters: "Are you better off today than you were four years ago?" On Nov 5, he ushered in a red wave that's almost certain to hand him a trifecta victory, a "grand slam", for the Republicans with control over the presidency, the Senate and the House of Representatives, where vote counting has yet to be finalised at the time of writing. This makes Donald Trump, the 47th president of the United States, a very powerful person with an enabling Congress behind him. In addition, the Supreme Court now has a majority of Republican appointees.

What impact will a Donald Trump second term have for Asia?

Remarkably little was said about foreign policy during the campaign. This is not unusual as elections everywhere are almost always about domestic issues. As president, Trump is expected to be more focused internally. He promised sweeping changes to government institutions such as looking into dismantling the deep state and reducing bureaucracy, among other things. He is expected to turn to control of the borders early in his administration and implement the mass repatriation of illegal immigrants.