Bush wins second White House term

George W Bush has won a second term at the White House following his Democratic rival's decision to concede defeat this afternoon.

It was as close as the polls suggested it might be, but by late afternoon John Kerry conceded defeat after he lost all hope of winning the key state of Ohio.

With Bush sitting on 254 electoral college votes and Kerry on 252, the result hinged on Ohio, which holds 20 votes – enough to propel either candidate over the 270 mark needed to secure the presidency.

However, it became clear this morning that Mr Bush was surging ahead of his rival in the eastern state. Optimism was so high in the Bush camp that the president's White House chief of staff, Andrew Card, faced the media pack this morning to proclaim the race won.

The Kerry/Edwards campaign finally conceded defeat late this afternoon, and it has been reported that Senator Kerry has already phoned Mr Bush to inform him of his decision. He is scheduled to make a public statement at 6pm GMT.

Despite what has been a controversial presidency that both polarised and galvanised the voting public, Mr Bush collected 57 million ballots – over 7 million more than in 2000 – giving him the biggest endorsement from the electorate ever received by a candidate.

Senator Kerry, whose campaign centred around painting George Bush as the wrong man to lead the nation, failed to convince voters that he was a credible alternative.

(gmcg/sp)