Her loss could not diminish the Democrats’ stellar showing on Tuesday, nor could it mask the internal struggle soon to play out in the new House majority. McGrath was one of dozens of Democratic candidates to advocate a change in the party’s leadership—denying Pelosi another turn as speaker—and though she lost, many of her fellow travelers will arrive in Washington early next year sensing an obligation to follow through. With Democrats in control of the House for the first time since 2010, and Trump heading into his own reelection, the party’s approach over the next two years will echo far beyond.

“I think the Democratic Party needs to be reinvented, and its message redesigned,” said Phillips, the incoming Democrat who flipped the Minnesota seat held by Republicans for six decades. “I feel very strongly that it’s time for leadership change in the Democratic caucus. And not just generationally speaking. I don’t think the current leadership is in a position to collaborate. I don’t think that’s been demonstrated. And if this country needs anything right now, it’s collaboration—setting aside the political swords and getting back to work.”

The country also needs nuance—which is not Congress’s strong suit. “It’s easier for people to say good, bad, black, white, red, blue, bad, good, Democrat, Republican,” Spanberger said on a drive down a Virginia highway, heading to her final meet-and-greet before Election Day. “Take that open borders thing….” Spanberger then launched into a two-minute monologue on the intricacies of detention orders and arrest warrants, the Fourth Amendment and sanctuary cities, jurisdictional issues and legal proceedings involving judges.