And there is every reason to believe that a Vice President Pence would be almost uniquely historically powerful, in contrast to the beta role he seems to be cast in by the media. Trump seems quite interested in being president, but he does not seem all that interested in doing the work of the president. That’s where Pence comes in—Trump and his team have indicated they are looking for a “COO,” one with Washington experience. One can easily imagine a President Trump outsourcing almost all of his policy agenda to Pence—meaning a Vice President Pence could realistically set the agenda for most of the policies of a Trump administration outside of a few bright and shiny objects of particular interest to the Donald.

Ironically, Pence’s agenda, while conservative in many ways, also dovetails nicely with that of the more “establishment” wing of the party. For example, on Trump’s signature issue of immigration, his vice-presidential nominee has more in common with Paul Ryan’s pro-amnesty position than he does with Donald Trump’s restrictionist views. Pence is certainly a conservative, but his record in both Congress and Indiana has suggested that he is uncomfortable (and often unsuccessful) standing up on principle on tough issues. It would be one of the delicious (depending on one’s taste) historical ironies, if voters, looking to elect someone to shake things up, instead wound up with almost a carbon copy of the GOP policies and style they thought they were throwing out.

While it is obviously impossible to predict the future, one thing is certain: Conservative voters should pay a lot of attention to Mike Pence tonight. Because it’s entirely possible that they will be looking at the power behind the throne in a Trump presidency. And what’s more, they may be looking at the man who will someday occupy the throne itself.