Two-thousand eight was an epic moment in history for us, and it really felt like America had come to terms with being an aspirational country. And then, of course, this last — 2016 — happened and it was just a blow to all of us who think that way.

And that is really what our call to action is. In the physics world, for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Well, 2018 is the reaction to 2016. And hopefully a couple of years from now we’ll look back in history and say, ‘Hey, our democracy is incredibly healthy because we survived a despot.’

You would describe President Trump as a despot?

Absolutely. Of course he is. He’s using all the fear and division tactics that any third-world leader would use. Of course he’s going to start with the transgender community, he’ll start with the most marginalized. But no community should feel comfortable when any community is being attacked.

What would you say to people, both inside and outside the L.G.B.T. community, who doubted that a transgender woman could win a political victory like this?

I would say, “Have more faith in your fellow human beings.” I’ve never lost faith in my fellow human beings, and I continue to get reaffirmed in that goodness.

What kind of responses did you get while campaigning to your status as a transgender woman? How did you make it part of the story you told voters?

In Vermont, it is not part of my story. I can safely say I have talked to thousands of Vermonters, and I can only think of one who brought it up. It’s just not an issue here in Vermont, and I think the data proves that.