Had you asked me a week ago why Kamala Harris might lose, I would have given you a list of the little things: her word salad answers, her lack of an agenda, her evasiveness, her lack of intelligence and political skills… But I was expecting a close election, a squeaker. This wasn’t a close election. This was a blowout.

Donald Trump won 312 electoral votes, he won the popular vote, and it looks like he won over 50 percent of the popular vote. Additionally, Republicans not only won the U.S. Senate; they are walking in with a healthy majority, and it looks like the GOP expanded its majority in the U.S. House. Even better, compared to 2016 and 2020, Trump expanded his support almost everywhere…

He lost New Jersey by 16 points four years ago. This year he lost by five. California went from a 29- to a 17-point loss. Illinois from a 17 to an 8-point loss. New York dropped from 23 to 12 points.

This was not an election tipped by micro-moments, by gaffes, or a terrible answer on The View that went viral. Trump won 45 percent of the Hispanic vote, 20 percent of black men, 42 percent of 18 to 29-year-olds, a near-record number of Jews,  46 percent of New York Jews, and an outright victory in the Arab-majority town of Dearborn, Michigan.

This is a realignment caused by only two things: 1) a rejection of the Democrat party’s objectively ruinous policies and 2) Trump having the moral courage to offer a stark and clear alternative, as opposed to the RomneyBushMcCain Democrat-lite alternative.

Here’s what happened…

In 2020, Democrats and their media allies told voters that Trump had fumbled the pandemic, caused urban riots, caged kids, blown up the economy, and so violated political norms that it was time to return to a nice and normal political environment with the adults once again in charge. No more drama, we were promised. No more stress. Hey, you tried an outsider; it didn’t work. Let’s return to normal.

But then what happened…?

Everything went to shit, and Democrats couldn’t blame it on a once-in-a-century pandemic. In all that shit, there was only them and the results of their terrible ideas and policies.

Suddenly, we had a president who had no idea where he was. There was war in Ukraine. The Middle East exploded. Eggs cost $4.00 a dozen. A bag of chips cost $7.00. The price of gas doubled. Violent crime was everywhere, and no one went to prison, even after being caught on video. An explosion of antisemitism in our cities and campuses. A wide-open border inviting millions upon millions of unvetted, third-worlders, even as the wages of Americans failed to keep up with inflation, housing prices skyrocketed, and our cities were destroyed by those who had no desire to contribute or assimilate. Obvious perverts in high heels invaded female locker rooms and bathrooms. Men stole victories, trophies, and opportunity from female athletes. Children exposed to drag queens and naked men. Kids permanently mutilated and sterilized by lunatic parents and educators practicing Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy to appease their trans gods. Women shouting their abortions. Gay porn in schools. Peaceful protesters imprisoned. The opposition leader indicted 94 times on fake charges meant to imprison him for life. The death of merit at the hands of DEI. The politicization of absolutely everything, from movies to TV shows to cartoons to beer. A corporate media in relentless gaslight mode telling us everything’s fine, telling us to ignore the chaos and embrace the “joy,” the “vibes,” and camo hats… To ignore the grocery bill and base our vote on a joke about Puerto Rico, a rigged poll out of Iowa, and a hoax about executing Liz Cheney. To ignore the fact you’ve been priced out of buying a home and embrace the dimwit who never worked at McDonald’s whom no one voted for. To accept a “handful” of illegal immigrant gangs taking over apartment buildings to avoid being called a NaziFascistSexistRacist.

The progressive agenda made things so bad at home and abroad that none of the usual left-wing tricks worked this time. Instead, Americans of all stripes finally — finally! — broke the chains of a fascist culture that said, You’re black; you vote like this. You’re young; you vote like this. You’re Jewish; you vote like this. You’re Arab; you vote like this. You speak Spanish; you vote like this.

Nothing terrifies the organized left more than the fact that Trump intends to keep his promises and the knowledge that if he does, in 2028, JD Vance will win New Jersey.

John Nolte’s first and last novel, Borrowed Time, is winning five-star raves from everyday readers. You can read an excerpt here and an in-depth review here. Also available in hardcover and on Kindle and Audiobook.