As news emerged that Joe Biden had won the US presidential election, crowds poured onto the streets of Washington and other cities in exuberant celebration.

In the capital, the sound of car horns filled the streets, with hundreds gathering downtown -- whooping, laughing and clapping, in Black Lives Matter Plaza near the White House.

Across the city, people came out onto porches, toasting the Biden victory with champagne and tequila, many of them glued to their phones as they shared the news.

People poured into the streets of New York as well, yelling and clapping from balconies and banging on pans.