The American people have sent a clear message: They really, really, really hate Donald Trump. He wasn’t technically on the ballot, but also: He definitely was. The Republican candidates were nothing more than Trump’s servile minions, and the election was a referendum on their master. Democrats won solid majorities in both the House and the Senate, in the biggest blowout of any midterm election in half a century. The question now: What will it change?If the US had a parliamentary system, such a bloodbath would sweep Trump off to his golf course forever. But he’ll hold the presidency for the next two years, with power that (thanks in part to a friendly Supreme Court) is nearly imperial. So long as Trump retains the fealty of 34 Senators (and Republicans will hold at least 44 seats), he can block any legislation the Democrats might enact. But last night’s victory matters for at least five reasons.AdvertisementFirst, all decisions on raising and spending government funds are, under the US Constitution, entirely up to Congress. As a matter of law, the president can’t continue his war on Iran, or levy tariffs, or send masked goons to kidnap construction workers without Congressional approval. As a matter of real-world fact, of course, this President will do precisely as he pleases. But he’ll be doing so over the express wishes of Congress rather than with its supine consent — and that isn’t nothing.Trump will continue illegally moving money around according to his whim, and mire any attempt at judicial accountability in multi-year lawsuits before judges he himself has appointed. If Congress withholds the funds to keep the machinery of government operating, Trump will win any game of chicken over a shutdown: He fundamentally doesn’t care about governance, so he has nothing to lose. But Democrats will start to turn the direction of government spending: They won’t be able to claw back the hundreds of billions of dollars that Trump has siphoned off to corporations and plutocrats (including himself), but they’ll at least stanch the flow.Also Read | The better angels of democracy have asserted themselves in AmericaThe second is pausing Trump’s subversion of the judiciary. Federal judges must be confirmed by the Senate, and the Democrats will be able to block Trump’s stacking of the judiciary with his hand-picked puppets. This is most important for the Supreme Court, which already has a Trumpist supermajority, but it extends throughout the federal appellate and district courts. Judiciary reform, including expansion of the Supreme Court, must be a priority of the next Democratic administration. Until then, Democrats can (and should) simply refuse any new confirmations.AdvertisementThe third is investigations. Public hearings, with the power of subpoena, can shine a light on much of the corruption, mismanagement, and blatant illegality that has characterised Trump’s rule from his first day in office. This will establish a public record, and set the stage for prosecutions if a future Democrat administration decides that it’s interested in accountability.The fourth is creating a legislative agenda. Democrats won’t be able to pass any laws without Trump’s approval, but they can deliver a procession of bills to his desk and make him veto them. What would the Democrats legislate if they had a cooperative president: Halt data centres and block the reckless explosion of AI? Health care for all? Abolish ICE? In the 2028 presidential election, Democrats will need a clear, strong message that is not merely “Stop Trump”. They can write the promissory notes for that programme now.The last is impeachment. Yes, as the Democrats learned during Trump’s first term, it’s far easier to impeach a president in the House (requires a simple majority) than to convict and remove him from office in the Senate (requires a supermajority). And, yes, many Democrats are too gun-shy to go down this path again. But the threat of impeachment is the only real weapon the Democrats will possess — and the only true check on an utterly lawless President.In his first term, Trump broke the law frequently, and was impeached twice. In his second, his recklessness has spiralled: Abolishing entire government agencies without any act of Congress, executing hundreds of civilians in international waters, grabbing corrupt pay-offs from Emirati sheikhs and crypto-lords with gleeful abandon — the list goes on and on and on. In order for Trump to be removed from office, about a dozen Republican senators would have to switch sides. That’s highly unlikely, but it’s happened before: Richard Nixon was forced to resign the presidency by the threat of such action by his own party.you may likeDemocratic leaders will be tempted to spend the next two years playing it safe: Don’t rock the boat, avoid conflicts with Trump, just wait him out and focus the next presidential election on the price of groceries. That would be a profound mistake. The candidates who won yesterday’s election spanned the ideological spectrum, from sober centrists like Roy Cooper in North Carolina to fiery progressives like Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan. But they had one thing in common: A desire to fight.If the Democrats listen to the American electorate, that’s what they’ll do with the power they’ve been given. Stand up to Trump and his cronies. Roll back the corrupt giveaways to billionaires and corporations. Fight for the people who put them in office. Fight for democracy. Fight for us all.Blank is author of Arrow of the Blue-Skinned God: Retracing the Ramayana Through India and Mullahs on the Mainframe: Islam and Modernity Among the Daudi Bohras