On Tuesday night, the Democratic Party proved it’s not quite dust and ashes. It took governor’s mansions in Virginia and New Jersey. It flipped two state legislature seats in Georgia and 14 in Virginia. Maine voted for Medicaid expansion by referendum. A slew of local candidates backed by Our Revolution and Democratic Socialists of America won city council seats in Knoxville, Tennessee; Charlottesville, Virginia; and Somerville, Massachusetts. A lefty outsider, Larry Krasner, won the district attorney’s race in Philadelphia.

In total, 19 candidates backed by Our Revolution won seats; so did 15 members of Democratic Socialists of America. (There is overlap between the two groups.) The results aren’t just good news for the party, which had been demoralized, or for voters, who desperately need an alternative to Donald Trump’s Republican Party. It’s good news for the left, which needed to prove that it is a viable political force. There should no longer be any doubt that this is the case.

Heading into the election, the party looked to be a shambles. Donna Brazile’s ongoing book tour had devolved into another round of the primary song that never ends. Ralph Northam, Virginia’s new Democratic governor, had flipped his position on sanctuary cities right before the election (he opposed them now, he announced), and his unclear stance on two unpopular pipelines worried some rural voters. Mired in Trump-induced identity crisis, the party seemed stuck on a fundamental question: What does it mean to be a Democrat? Tuesday provided answers, if the party cares to listen.

It can be the party of Lee Carter, a socialist veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who unseated the majority whip of the Virginia House. It can be the party of Danica Roem, a trans woman who defeated one of the most openly transphobic and homophobic members of the Virginia Republican Party. It can also be the party of Chris Hurst, who flipped a delegate seat in southwest Virginia as an openly pro–gun control candidate, and of Hala Ayala and Elizabeth Guzman, Latinas who won delegate races in an election cycle shaped by conservative race-baiting and xenophobia. These candidates and more exploded the narrow definitions of electability that have long governed Democratic politics. And they showed the key to victory is to show up everywhere and run.

Democrats contested 54 Republican delegate seats in Virginia this year and won 15, giving them a shot of controlling the chamber. In contrast, they only flipped one seat in 2015. Even without that majority, they’ve placed an important check on Republican dominance and built up voter enthusiasm; The Washington Post reports that voter turnout on Tuesday “was the highest in 20 years for a gubernatorial race.” Correlation is not causation, but it’s reasonable to suspect some relationship between the party’s decision to contest more races and increased voter turnout.