The election on Tuesday was projected to be historic, but few people predicted the massive turnout, and the stunning result. Voters gave Democrats an overwhelming victory because Trump’s policies are hurting them, and they support a party that will fight back.

Democrats’ first priority on Tuesday was retaking the House of Representatives. Needing only 4 seats to reach 218 and replace the razor-thin Republican majority, Democrats are instead projected to win more than 260 seats. The House has the “power of the purse,” a significant tool to deliver economic relief for Americans, as well as oversight powers to fight Trump’s corruption. The new Speaker of the House will likely be Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the first Black man to hold the Speaker’s gavel.

Democrats exceeded their hopes by taking the United States Senate as well, and by a wider margin than anyone thought possible. With so many small, rural, Republican-leaning states, many people worried Democrats could no longer compete in this body, but wins in big states like Texas and small states like Iowa show the character of the candidates still matters more to voters than their political party. 

With the House and Senate both blue, Democrats will have enormous leverage when writing the national budget. Harmful cuts to healthcare, clean energy, food assistance, and our federal agencies could quickly be reversed, reducing pressure on families as well as our state and local budgets. Empowered by this overwhelming mandate, Democrats can make affordability the centerpiece of our politics, not just our campaigns.

Democrats will also hold the governorships in 30 of the 50 states, a majority for the first time since 2010, after flipping Texas, Georgia, Ohio, Nevada, and Iowa. Each of these states participated in the illegal deployment of National Guard troops in Washington D.C., Minnesota, and cities across America supporting Trump’s mass deportation campaign. Democratic governors will bring those guardsmen home where they can focus on their lawful role of emergency response and disaster relief, instead of helping Trump entrench himself before the next transfer of power in January 2029. Keisha Lance Bottoms of Georgia will be the nation’s first Black female governor, and Deb Haaland of New Mexico, our first Native American female governor.

Two of the most historic upsets were in Texas and Kansas, where Christian pastors running on messages of decency and inclusion offered voters an alternative to the hate and division that has defined the Trump years. In Michigan, a Muslim man overcame a hateful, bigoted opponent with the support of the President to become the first Muslim to serve in the United States Senate. 

And here in Virginia, voters made history of our own. All three constitutional amendments passed by double digits, writing reproductive freedom, marriage equality, and the automatic restoration of voting rights into the Constitution of Virginia, rights no future legislature can strip away on a party-line vote. Senator Mark Warner won a fourth term with roughly 60 percent of the vote. Northern Virginia returned Don Beyer and James Walkinshaw to the House, with Walkinshaw winning his first full term. Congressman Rob Wittman’s long hold on the 1st District ended after a two point loss to Shannon Taylor, and down in Virginia Beach, Elaine Luria reclaimed the 2nd District from Republican Jen Kiggans. Virginians did not just send a message to Washington; they locked in freedom at home.

Most importantly, this election proves to voters who sometimes feel that their vote and their voice do not matter that change is still possible in our political system. Americans have watched Trump put our troops in harm’s way, our government in chaos, and our economy in freefall for two years. On Election Day, they spoke up in overwhelming numbers, Democrat, Republican and Independent, to demand change, and together we made history.