But before the battle gets going, let’s take a breath and ask: What do the results tell us about the country on a deeper level?

A few things to look at:

1. District Maps: This New York Times map shows which parts of the country shifted to the left and to the right compared to 2016. The leftward tilt was pretty widely dispersed.

2. Exit Polls: Surveys of voters from the 1980s onward highlight divisions that are both racial and generational, with the age divide becoming especially striking.

3. Diversity: More women and more young, nonwhite lawmakers are heading to Washington, including the first Muslim and Native American women elected to Congress. That means the power structure will more closely resemble the country at large.

All three of those developments point to an electorate with more people who have become more frustrated with President Trump, including many of those who voted for him two years ago.

If the age trends hold, and with a bunch of the winners coming from the more moderate side of the Democratic Party, it may also mean a future with more consensus than we have now.

Imagine that, an America united. I admit, I have a hard time picturing it.

But if we look beyond the what-ifs and issues and ideology — if we really step back — maybe we can see something more illuminating.