Democrats were stunned at the magnitude of Harris' loss to Trump and pointed fingers at everything from immigration policy to Biden to the need to throw out the old guard.

"Complete, unmitigated disaster," Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis said when asked about the results. "That was a wholesale repudiation of the Democratic message, the Democratic strategy, Harris' candidacy. There is no way to sugarcoat what an abject disaster this was."

The election of Donald Trump to a second term is a wake-up call for Democrats, who will study why Trump did so well among key constituencies as well as in some deep blue areas. Vice President Harris struggled with key issues for voters and to separate herself from President Biden.

Democrats are living their nightmare. Again. As Election Day gave way to Wednesday, Democrats were beginning to reckon with the reality that the party may be in for a repeat of 2016. The Associated Press had already called two of the core seven battleground states — North Carolina and Georgia — for Donald Trump,