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President Bush got a call from John Kerry shortly after 1600 GMT on Wednesday, when the challenger conceded the election.

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Mr Kerry then publicly admitted it was all over to his supporters in Boston, saying it was now time to heal the divided nation.

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For some Democrats the disappointment was almost too much to bear.

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It had always looked as if the final outcome would depend on which candidate won Ohio and so it proved.

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For several hours after the polls closed the result looked impossible to call, but as the night wore on President Bush's supporters grew increasingly confident that he had won.

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The writing seemed to be on the wall, when the president's chief of staff, Andrew Card, said Mr Bush's lead was "statistically insurmountable".

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US share prices rose sharply as the markets worked out which way the race was going.