This is the 58th US presidential election since 1789. Here is a list of quirks, figures and fun facts.

:: Election Day was designated as the Tuesday following the first Monday in November back in 1845. At the time, officials calculated that farmers needed a day to get to the country seat to cast ballots but did not want to interfere with church day on Sunday, so they chose Tuesday.

Image: Hillary Clinton is the first woman to clinch the nomination for a major party

:: Hillary Clinton is the first woman to clinch the nomination for a major party. But the first woman to run for president was Victoria Woodhull, leader of the Suffragette movement in the US, in 1872 - almost 50 years before women were allowed to vote in presidential elections (1920).

:: At 70, Donald Trump would be the oldest candidate to be elected as a first-term president. Ronald Reagan was 69 when he won his first term, and 73 when he won for the second time.

Image: In 1984 President Ronald Reagan won 49 of 50 states

:: John F Kennedy was the youngest man to be elected president at 43.


:: Mr Trump would be one of the tallest: he is 6ft3. Abraham Lincoln is considered the tallest at 6ft4.

:: Mr Reagan is the only divorced man to be elected president. Mr Trump, twice divorced and currently married to Melania, would be the second.

:: Two presidents won 49 out of 50 states: Mr Reagan in 1984 and Richard Nixon in 1972.

Image: Mr Trump, here with third wife Melania, would be the second President to be divorced

:: A candidate has lost the election after winning the popular vote four times. The last was Al Gore versus George W Bush in 2000. The others are: Grover Cleveland in 1888; Samuel Tilden in 1876; and Andrew Jackson in 1824.

:: Mr Cleveland is the only one who won two non-consecutive terms. He served the first time between 1885-1889 and the second 1893-1897. He is listed as the 22nd and 24rd US president.

:: That explains why Barack Obama is listed as the 44th US President even if there have been 43 presidents.

:: Mr Obama sent his first tweet from @POTUS in 2015; First Lady Michelle posted her first photo to Instagram in 2013. To date, there have been around 30,000 @WhiteHouse tweets.

Four more years. pic.twitter.com/bAJE6Vom — Barack Obama (@BarackObama) 7 November 2012

:: The handle @POTUS, which has more than 11 million followers, will be made available to the new president on 20 January. It will retain its followers but start with no tweets on the timeline.

:: In 2012 Mr Obama's celebratory "four more years" tweet after winning a second term was retweeted more than half a million times, making it the most retweeted post of all times - until it got surpassed by an Oscar selfie featuring Ellen DeGeneres and other celebs.

:: Money is always a crucial factor in any election. Mrs Clinton has raised $1,068.1m and Mr Trump raised $512.2m. In 2012 Mr Obama raised $1,072.6m.

:: The first of three TV debates between Mrs Clinton and Mr Trump was watched by a record 84 million people.

:: Since 1944, Ohio has voted for the winner at every election. The one exception? In 1960 when it went for Mr Nixon instead of JFK. No Republican has ever won the presidency without winning Ohio.

Image: Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton shake hands after the first Presidential Debate

::The Democratic Party started using the donkey as their symbol in the 19th century, when Andrew Jackson was the nominee (1828). His opponent called him a "jack***" and Mr Jackson started using it on campaign posters. Influential political cartoonist Thomas Nast then started using it regularly in his cartoons.

:: Mr Nast also helped popularise the elephant as the symbol of the Republican Party. He famously used it in an 1874 Harper's Weekly cartoon.

:: In 1948 The Chicago Daily ran a front-page that mistakenly declared Thomas Dewey the winner over incumbent president Harry Truman. A beaming Mr Truman famously held the "Dewey Defeats Truman" front page at a victory appearance.

Image: John F Kennedy remains the youngest man to be elected to the US highest office

:: Want to give it a go next time? To be a presidential candidate you need to be: at least 35 years old; a permanent US resident for at least 14 years; and considered a natural US born citizen.

:: Sky News will bring you every twist and turn of the US election results - and we're the only UK news organisation which will bring you details of the official exit poll. Our special coverage starts on Tuesday at 10pm.

Read more:

:: Trump vs Clinton on key issues for America

:: What time the polls close and when to expect a result?

:: The states that will decide the outcome

:: The Electoral College and how you win a Presidential election