Democrats seized Congress on Tuesday by significantly larger margins than predicted. The nationwide map of county voting shifts depict a double-digit blue shift in nearly every county across the country. The day marked a number of firsts: a Black female governor in Keisha Lance Bottoms, a Native American senator in Peggy Flanagan, an openly gay male senator in Chris Pappas and a Muslim senator in Abdul El-Sayed.

The blue wave — to echo the language of the 2018 midterms — can be read as either a short-lived product of anger or a more lasting rebuilding effort on the part of Democrats. Regardless, the sheer magnitude of the Democratic victory will allow a swath of interesting political realities and maneuvers to take place.

What most Democrats are looking forward to is control of Congress for the final two years of Trump’s presidency. A House majority stands in the way of Trump-backed legislation and gains leverage in negotiations over necessary bills like government funding. A Senate majority can block Trump appointees to the cabinet or judiciary.

Democrats can combat Trump outside of legislation too. Robert Garcia, the Democratic Representative from California now likely to take control of the Oversight Committee, said he would crack down on Trump’s “grift” and “corruption.”

Beyond these two years though, the infiltration into traditionally Republican strongholds provides evidence for a longer lasting shift in favorability. The midterms saw Democrats converting Senate seats in South Carolina and Texas, and House seats in the rural midwest and Pennsylvania. In states like Maine and Texas where Republicans poured in campaign funding, Democrats won by margins even larger than expected. Likewise, in areas such as the Deep South that Republicans thought didn’t require money or attention, Democrats pulled off upsets in both chambers.

They won quickly, too. AP News called Jon Ossoff’s Georgia Senate race, predicted to be close, with barely more than half the votes in. Susan Collins called to concede the Maine Senate race to Troy Jackson before most major news sites even called the race.

The Democratic candidates also won on increasingly progressive campaigns. Peggy Flanagan, an unabashedly progressive candidate, won by 10 points in another race analysts cautioned might be close.

Yet even if the enthusiasm that fueled these midterms doesn’t last, Democrats can coast on their Tuesday-night victories well into the next presidency. For one, the large majorities in the Senate and House allow more leniency for Democrats in 2028. New congressional maps could also allow Democrats to hold on to newly won swing states for longer.

Winning the state legislature in states like Wisconsin or Arizona (tossups as of Tuesday night) may allow them to redraw congressional maps, which could aid in recalibrating the maps to be fairer — or doing some gerrymandering of their own, as Proposition 50 did in California last year.

The Senate majority in particular gives Democrats breathing room when candidates break rank. Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman is notorious for siding against his fellow Democrats on high profile decisions like cabinet nominations and foreign policy. The majority of 54 or more seats allows for a Fetterman-proof Democratic voting block.

This flexibility also allows for some strategic votes. Swing state victors in Texas’ James Talarico and South Carolina’s Annie Andrews have leeway to flip on controversial local issues to preserve popularity, improving their chances of reelection in 2032. That could also aid in catapulting presidential campaigns, which may be in Talarico’s sights.

Some Democratic gubernatorial victories also have more direct impacts on Congress. Iowa Republican Senator Charles Grassley, who is 93 years old, can no longer step down under a Republican Governor after Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand won. Were Grassley to die in office, a possibility he has considered, Sand would choose his successor.

The 2026 midterms mark a blue wave taller than even 2018’s, amid dissatisfaction with Trump and excitement for a Democratic party finally off the back foot. Whether Tuesday was a flash of anger or the foundation of a new era for Democrats won’t be decided now. But Democrats now have the tools to build a future for the party, a source of hope they haven’t had for quite some time.