Majority of media snap polls show Trump WON debate despite CNN’s overwhelming victory for Hillary

DONALD Trump's election team is claiming victory after last night's Presidential debate as most snap polls show he DID win on the night.

The surprising news comes after CNN awarded rival Hillary Clinton an overwhelming victory in the first no-holds-barred televised head-to-head.

However, across the US, many polls said Trump came out on top - with one giving him 80 per cent of its readers votes.

Last night the political foes tangled over the economy, her use of a private mail server and his unwillingness to release his income tax returns on Monday night. 

After the debate's end, polls conducted by a number of media websites showed their readers and viewers felt the Republican came out on top.

Trump acknowledged the result, tweeting: "Wow, did great in the debate polls (except for @CNN - which I don't watch). Thank you!"

CNN's snap poll gave Clinton the win with 62 per cent to Trump's 27. 

But the Drudge Report's poll showed Trump fared a lot better with 81.5 per cent of the vote to Clinton's 18.5 while others, including CBS New York and the Washington Times, also saw Trump win the vote.

Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad said in a statement released by the Trump campaign that the property magnate represented a welcome challenge to the status quo.

“Voters know that while [Clinton] is controlled by special interests in Washington, Donald Trump is a fresh new leader who will upend the status quo and put the American people first,” he said.

“As always, Donald Trump spoke from the heart during tonight’s debate and showed us the type of president he will be.”