"Setbacks are unavoidable. Giving up is unforgivable," Biden said at the White House Rose Garden as he addressed staff who were disappointed in Vice President Kamala Harris' defeat. "A defeat does not mean we are defeated."
Biden said Tuesday's (local time) election had proven the integrity of the US electoral system and pledged an orderly transfer of power - an implicit rebuke of Trump, who sought to overturn his 2020 defeat to Biden and raised baseless claims of fraud during this year's campaign as well.
"Something I hope we can do no matter who you voted for is see each other not as adversaries but as fellow Americans, bring down the temperature," Biden said. "I also hope we can lay to rest the question about the integrity of the American electoral system. It is honest, it is fair, and it is transparent. And it can be trusted, win or lose."
Biden invited Trump to come meet at the White House -- a courtesy Trump did not offer to Biden in 2020 -- and Trump's campaign said the president-elect would go. In the weeks ahead, Trump will select personnel to serve under his leadership.
Some Democrats have blamed Biden, 81, for Harris' defeat, saying he should not have sought reelection. Biden only dropped his reelection bid in July after a disastrous TV debate with Trump raised alarm bells about his mental fitness.
"We lost this battle. The America of your dreams is calling for you to get back up," he said.
Harris sought on Wednesday to console supporters. Like Biden, she promised to aid Trump's transition before his inauguration on January 20 but urged Democrats to continue to fight for what they believe in.
Some Democrats worried the loss means their values – left-leaning, socially liberal – are now firmly a minority among Americans. Others were frustrated with the party's leadership, who they said had lost touch with voters who wanted help with the high cost of living.
Biden did not address his role in the election or criticism from members of his party. He has said repeatedly that he ran for office in 2020 to "restore the soul of America" from the chaos around Trump. Biden's own legacy now will be bookended by the Republican's return instead.
DECISIVE VICTORY
Trump's victory, surprisingly decisive after opinion polls had shown a neck-and-neck contest, underscored how disenchanted Americans had become with the economy - in particular inflation - along with border security and the direction of the country and its culture.
Hispanics, traditionally Democratic voters, and lower-income households hit hardest by inflation helped fuel Trump's victory.
Harris' campaign pressed the message that Trump was unfit to serve again as president, as a convicted felon and one whose false claims of voting fraud inspired a mob to storm the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, in a failed bid to overturn his 2020 loss to Biden.
The former president will face far fewer limits on his power in his second White House term, as the head of a Republican Party that he has remade in his image over the last eight years.
Republicans wrested the US Senate from Democrats in Tuesday's vote, ensuring Trump's party will control at least one chamber of Congress next year. Republicans also held an edge in the battle for the House of Representatives, though 38 of the 435 races still had no winner.
Trump prevailed in five of the seven battleground states to give him at least 295 Electoral College votes, more than the 270 needed to win the presidency. He was leading in the remaining two, Arizona and Nevada, where votes were still being tallied.
Trump was also on track to become the first Republican presidential candidate to win the highest number of votes nationally since George W. Bush two decades ago. He lost the popular vote to Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016 but secured enough Electoral College votes to win the White House.
World stocks gained on Thursday after a record rise for US shares overnight, and US Treasuries remained under pressure as investors processed the impact of a second Trump presidency.
Wall Street executives expected smaller government, broad deregulation as well as tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy, although fresh tariffs could bring challenges in the form of a higher deficit and inflation.
PERSONNEL PICKS
Among people who may figure in Trump's leadership, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the world's richest man and a prominent Trump donor, has been promised a role in his administration, as has former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Billionaire hedge fund manager John Paulson and investor Scott Bessent were seen as possible cabinet officers in his administration, while former Trump officials Robert O'Brien and Mike Pompeo could return to office.
On trade, Trump is expected to revive policies he favoured during his first term, notably tariffs, which he has called the "most beautiful word".
That could set him on a collision course with China, which has the world's second-largest economy, sow discord with allies and roil global industries from automakers to chipmakers.
Chinese President Xi Jinping sent Trump a congratulatory message and said he hopes the two powers will coexist peacefully, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was among world leaders congratulating Trump. But Trump has been critical of US assistance for Ukraine in its war with Russia. He has said he could end the war in 24 hours but has not said how.
The White House plans to rush billions of dollars in security assistance to Ukraine before Biden leaves office in January, sources said on Wednesday, hoping to shore up the government in Kyiv before Trump takes over.
