First election of President Donald Trump Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket of former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and Virginia junior senator Tim Kaine, in what was considered one of the biggest political upsets in American history. It was the fifth and most recent presidential election in which the winning candidate lost the popular vote. 761,722 views on November 8, 2016 — Wikipedia's most-read article that day. Also most read: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, HTTP 404, Donald Trump, United States Electoral College. Wiki link