The implications for the Senate, which was exceedingly close before Friday evening, are now dire for Republicans. It was so close that small disruptions one way or the other could push things toward one side or the other, and the party split that will likely emerge from these revelations is not a “small” disruption.

What’s more interesting is the House. When Trump first secured the nomination in March, analysts speculated that he could flip the chamber to Democrats. That speculation subsided over the spring and summer, as Trump’s vote share held and Democratic recruiting efforts sputtered. As of today, RealClearPolitics has Republicans favored to lose about 15 House seats – a significant loss, but not enough to flip control.

But given the trajectory of the campaign for the past two weeks, we have to consider whether Democrats can win back the House. That’s not to say that Democrats are favored to take it back – they aren’t – but rather to say that this isn’t as absurd of a result as it seemed a few weeks ago. It is a possibility that now deserves to be taken seriously.

The scenario for Republicans would be akin to 1974. Thanks to Watergate that year, Republicans were wiped out across the board, even though President Ford was reasonably popular. Democrats gained 49 seats, inflating their numbers to 291, roughly the levels found in the Great Society/New Deal congresses.