New York: Donald Trump has transformed himself from businessman, real estate tycoon and reality TV star into the country's first former US president to be declared a convicted felon.

And after surviving two assassination attempts during his 2024 campaign, the 78-year-old remains unstoppable and American voters are giving him a second term. In doing so, he destroyed the dream of the Democratic Party and millions of Kamala Harris supporters to finally have the first female president in the White House.

He is the oldest person in US history to be elected president.

From his departure from office following his defeat in the 2020 presidential election to his nomination as the Republican nominee for the 2024 race, Trump continued to dominate the American news cycle and the country's psyche.

He refused to accept the November 2020 result that put Joe Biden in the White House, and a stunned nation watched as his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, with presidential election results.

His third run for office in 2024 was marked by a series of indictments and criminal proceedings, as well as a conviction in a New York court – making him the first former US president to be convicted of a crime.

A grand jury found him guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records. The Biden-Harris campaign said at the time that no one was above the law, while Trump called the ruling the result of a “rigged” political system.

But none of this could deter his ardent supporters, who rallied behind him and his policies.

The outpouring of support was palpable in Milwaukee in July when Trump, having survived an assassination attempt and wearing a bandaged ear, arrived at the Republican National Convention to formally accept the party's nomination for president for the third consecutive term.

Trump was hit by a bullet in the upper part of his right ear when a gunman fired several shots at his campaign rally in Pennsylvania.

He was born on June 14, 1946 in Queens, New York, the fourth of five children of Mary and Fred Trump, a successful real estate developer. He earned a finance degree from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Finance and Commerce in 1968.

After taking over his father's company in 1971, he renamed it the Trump Organization and soon diversified into projects such as hotels, resorts, residential and commercial buildings, casinos and golf courses. Trump also became involved in reality television with “The Apprentice” in 2004, which made him a household name in America.

Trump married Ivana Zelnickova, a Czech athlete and model, but divorced her in 1990. The couple has three children – Donald Jr., Ivanka and Eric.

He then married actress Marla Maples in 1993 but divorced in 1999. They have an only child, Tiffany. Trump's current wife Melania, whom he married in 2005, is a former Slovenian model. They have a son, Barron William Trump.

In the 2016 presidential election campaign, Trump won as the Republican candidate against Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.

The 2024 election took place amid concerns about the economy, illegal immigration and the wars in West Asia and Europe. Trump's supporters saw him as the only one who could offer solutions to these problems.

“I will end the illegal immigration crisis by closing our border and completing the wall, most of which I have already built,” Trump told cheering supporters at his party’s national convention, referring to the country’s southern border.

He promised that “inflation will completely disappear when he returns to the White House.”

Trump vowed to end the war between Russia and Ukraine after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated him on his Republican presidential candidacy.

“As your next President of the United States, I will bring peace to the world and end the war that has cost so many lives and destroyed countless innocent families. “Both sides will be able to come together and negotiate an agreement that ends violence and paves the way to prosperity,” Trump said.

The four years of his second presidency will not only determine how the United States deals with its pressing domestic problems, they could also determine its place in the world. The world is watching.