And the decision was to elect Donald J Trump as its next president. In its way, this will be seen to be as big a shock as the choice of the UK to leave the EU (on just 37% of the votes of those entitled to vote). At the time of writing, it is still thought likely that Mrs Clinton will emerge with the largest share of the popular vote, but Mr Trump has carried enough of the Electoral College vote to ensure that he will become president.

Many in the US and the rest of the world will be uneasy about a Trump presidency in view of his very bellicose statements in a number of key areas – refusing to recognise the outcome if he lost (Mrs Clinton has already conceded); refusing to allow Muslims into the US; building a wall along the US/Mexico border etc. Initial market reaction saw Asian markets close sharply down and the Dollar slipped against the Yen before rallying, but these are just knee-jerk reactions.

What has been forgotten in all the rhetoric is that the Republican candidate beat the Democrat candidate, bringing to an end a two-term Democratic presidency. In normal circumstances, this would have seen the Dollar strengthening and the markets closing higher as the Republicans are seen as being more business-friendly than their rivals, but this has been lost in face of the personalities involved. Of greater relevance is the fact that the Republican Party now has control of both houses of parliament in the US and, consequently, this will make passage of Republican laws and policies more straightforward. It is likely that this reality will dawn on the investment community shortly and “normal service” will be resumed.

The President of the USA is not simply a hollow title and the personality and predilections of Mr Trump will be very important in foreign relations and domestic policies, of course. The election will be styled as the voice of the ignored finally being heard, of course, but it is difficult to see what has really changed other than US is now led by the Republicans (under the leadership of an “of the people billionaire”) rather than the Democrats. Business as usual?