Obama pledges to ease bitter divide

A triumphant US President Barack Obama pledged to ease the bitter partisan divide on display during his gruelling battle for re-election and sure to carry over into his second White House term, while the most pressing of many urgent economic problems looms with a “fiscal cliff” at the end of the year.

Mr Obama captured far more than the 270 electoral votes needed for victory over Republican Mitt Romney and further cemented his place in history, despite having his first term dominated by stubbornly high unemployment and widespread anxiety about the country’s future.