President-elect Donald Trump’s victory celebration at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida turned into an unconventional spectacle Tuesday night, October 5, 2024, spilling well into Wednesday morning. Rambling speeches and a parade of celebrity appearances marked the gathering.
Trump’s victory speech veered off-script multiple times, including a peculiar interaction with professional golfer Bryson DeChambeau. “We have up here today the U.S. Open Champion. He is a fantastic golfer,” Trump said before adding that DeChambeau “hits the ball a little bit longer than me, just a little bit.”
DeChambeau, who joined the LIV Golf tour in 2022 and has won twice, previously played golf with Trump during a YouTube series that raised $250,000 for the Wounded Warrior Project. The video has been viewed more than 11.7 million times. DeChambeau appeared on stage wearing a black MAGA hat and waved to the crowd.
DeChambeau’s relationship with Trump extends back several years. In 2017, the golfer gifted Trump a set of clubs worth $750. The president-elect is known to have the best golf handicap among all U.S. presidents.
The evening took several unexpected turns as Trump regaled the audience with various tangential stories, including an account of keeping tech billionaire Elon Musk waiting on hold for 40 minutes while he watched a SpaceX rocket video. During his remarks, Trump referred to Musk as a “new star” of the Republican party.
The Palm Beach County Convention Center guest list included Trump’s entire family – all five children and their partners – along with key campaign advisers and political allies instrumental to his previous campaigns.
Among the attendees were Tesla CEO Elon Musk, UFC CEO Dana White, NHL legend Wayne Gretzky, and Olympic athlete-turned-reality star Caitlyn Jenner. Other notable figures included Mike Lindell, Roger Stone, and Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene.
UFC executive Dana White took to the podium to express his support, declaring that “nobody deserves this more” than the former president.
The victory speech included several unusual claims, including Trump’s assertion that his life was “saved for a reason” and that “Promises made, promises kept” would be his governing mantra.
He also made unverified claims about his wife Melania’s memoir being “the number one bestselling book in the country.” He suggested that Robert F. Kennedy Jr., known for promoting vaccination conspiracy theories, would have a role in his administration’s healthcare system.
Trump secured his return to the White House by winning key battleground states, including Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and North Carolina, along with the popular vote, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris in the November 2024 election.