Two political commentators say Donald Trump's victory in yesterday's US election was in part because "a lot of people think things weren't working" and that he was able to "set the agenda".
The former US President, a Republican, will return to the White House in January after his win over Democratic candidate Kamala Harris.
Peter Loge, a former senior adviser to Democratic US president Barack Obama, is director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University. He told Breakfast this morning: "I think most folks were surprised at how quickly Trump wrapped it up, but not shocked at the overall outcome.
Political Editor Maiki Sherman reports on the political and economic fallout in New Zealand from Trump's win. (Source: 1News)
"I'm not sure it came down to where the Democrats fell short so much as how the American people were feeling.
"A lot of people view politics like their plumbing, they just want it to work – and a lot of people think things weren't working."
He pointed to the cost of living as an example of a key issue for voters.
"The people in charge were the Democratic politicians, so voters kicked them out and are gonna try the new set of politicians and see how they do.
"About half the American people are elated and think this is the best thing ever and America's gonna come roaring back, and about half of them are spending the day hiding under the covers and stress eating," Loge continued.
Harris didn't address her supporters last night. She was set to give a speech later today.
Asked about the delay, Loge said he hesitated to speculate.
"One never knows, it is a little odd," he said. "Waiting this long seems a little strange.
"I would have come out on stage and said, 'Hey, thank you so much, more to say later'."
Loge later added: "It's pretty clear that the American people, like people around the world, feel as if the global economy has left them behind.
"This isn't the world they were promised when they were growing up.
"Gas and groceries cost a ton of money and they're looking for people who say they'll fix it, they'll make you feel safe, they'll make you feel secure.
"Folks are nervous, they want someone to make things better for them, and I don't blame them."
He said the Democrats will spend "a lot of time arguing" about what went wrong for them and what they'll do now.
'Trend of people being left behind'
Maria Armoudian, a senior politics lecturer at the University of Auckland, said Trump "set the agenda" for the campaign.
His victory had been "developing for a very long time", she added.
Maria Armoudian, a senior politics lecturer at the University of Auckland, spoke to Breakfast after Donald Trump's victory. (Source: Breakfast)
"You've seen an economic shift, a huge shift," she said. "There has been this trend of people being left behind and there are a lot of reasons for it.
"The big issue is that people don't understand what happened, and so then you've got somebody who comes here and says, 'It's because of immigrants, it's because of the Democrats'.
"Well it's much deeper than that," Armoudian said. "[But] that therefore gives a pathway to somebody like a Donald Trump to come back.
"He set the agenda, right? Kamala Harris never was able to set the agenda.
"He was able to tie Kamala Harris to all of the issues that he made on his agenda."
'He reached out to everybody'
Scott Brown, a Republican former US Ambassador to New Zealand, told Breakfast he'd expected Trump to win – but he didn't expect it to be as "forceful" a victory as it was.
"Obviously, winning the popular vote is a big deal," Brown said. "He reached out to everybody.
"We're having serious trouble with the border, we're having serious trouble with inflation and the cost of goods, energy."
He said Trump has "great respect" for New Zealand.
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