In an historic night, Democrat Barack Obama won the 2008 race for the presidency. Essence editor Patrik Henry Bass reflects from New York City, and WBEZ Chicago Public Radio's Ben Calhoun gives a first-hand account of Obama's victory rally from Chicago.

The other big national races were for Congress and the Senate last night. Democrats picked up seats, although not as many as they'd hoped. There were also ballot initiatives revolving around several social issues that didn't make it to the stump. Todd Zwillich of Capitol News Connection and Takeaway political director Andrea Bernstein run down the results.

For Republican presidential nominee John McCain, it was a long and bumpy trip. He crawled and clawed his way back to the front of the pack by winning the New Hampshire primary, but ultimately didn't go all the way to the presidency. What comes next for the senator from Arizona?

North Carolina was another battleground state the Obama campaign targeted aggressively. That was a state where 56 percent of the population voted for President George W. Bush in 2004. The Takeaway checks in with Rob Christensen of the Raleigh News and Observer, who can also talk about the radical changes that happened in this state's Senate race.

It was a decisive evening for the Democrats last night, as the party earned not just a presidential victory, but majorities in both the House and Senate. So, what happens to the conservative movement now?