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The real-estate developer and TV star who became the 45th and 47th President of the United States
Donald Trump is the 47th President of the United States and one of the most consequential and polarising political figures of the modern era. He is only the second US president, after Grover Cleveland, to serve two non-consecutive terms. Before politics, he was a property developer, brand licensor and the host of the reality-TV show The Apprentice.
Trump was born on 14 June 1946 in Queens, New York City, the fourth of five children of Fred Trump, a successful real-estate developer, and Mary Anne MacLeod Trump, an immigrant from Scotland. He attended the New York Military Academy and later graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1968 with a degree in economics.
Trump joined his father's company and renamed it the Trump Organization. He expanded into Manhattan real estate, hotels, casinos and golf courses, with landmark projects such as Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue. Several of his casino businesses went through bankruptcy in the 1990s and 2000s, yet his name became a global brand licensed for buildings and products.
From 2004 to 2015, he hosted NBC's The Apprentice, which made him a household name and helped build the media persona he later brought to politics.
Trump announced his candidacy in 2015 and defeated Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election despite losing the popular vote.
Key actions of his first term included:
He was impeached twice by the House of Representatives — in 2019 and in 2021 after the 6 January Capitol attack — and acquitted both times by the Senate. He lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden and disputed the result.
Out of office, Trump faced several criminal and civil cases. In May 2024, a New York jury convicted him on 34 felony counts related to hush-money payments; he was later sentenced to an unconditional discharge. He survived an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July 2024, and went on to defeat Kamala Harris in November 2024, winning both the Electoral College and the popular vote.
Trump was inaugurated for his second term on 20 January 2025 and moved quickly, signing a record number of executive orders.
| Area | Key actions |
|---|---|
| Trade | Broad tariff programme reshaping global trade relationships |
| Immigration | Expanded enforcement and deportations; tightened southern border |
| Government | Federal workforce cuts and rollback of DEI programmes |
| Taxes | A major tax-and-spending law passed in 2025 |
| International bodies | Withdrawal from the Paris Agreement and the WHO |
| Military | Strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities (2025); the January 2026 Venezuela operation that captured Nicolás Maduro; US–Israel strikes on Iran in February 2026 |
| China | State visit to Beijing in May 2026 and hosted Xi Jinping in Washington in September 2026 |
Supporters credit him with tougher border control, tax cuts and an "America First" foreign policy; critics argue his tariffs raise costs for consumers, his use of executive power strains constitutional limits, and his military actions risk wider conflict. The November 2026 midterm elections are widely seen as a referendum on his second term.
Trump is known for an unscripted, combative speaking style, mass rallies and heavy use of social media — first Twitter, and later his own platform, Truth Social.
Trump has been married three times — to Ivana Zelníčková, Marla Maples and, since 2005, Melania Knauss — and has five children: Donald Jr., Ivanka, Eric, Tiffany and Barron.
Yes. He began his second term as the 47th President on 20 January 2025.
Twice, in 2019 and 2021. The Senate acquitted him both times.
He ran the Trump Organization, a real-estate and branding business, and hosted The Apprentice.
The Republican Party.
Donald Trump has transformed American politics, turning the Republican Party around his personal brand and challenging long-standing norms at home and abroad. Whether viewed as a disruptor delivering on promises or as a threat to institutions, his two presidencies are set to define a major chapter of 21st-century world history.
