The drive from the College Park hotel, located across from the University of Maryland campus, to Howard University in Washington, DC is just 7.2 miles.

But as election night headed into an uncertain Wednesday morning, the psychological distance between the two venues widened.

Much of the crowd that gathered Tuesday night to celebrate Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks' historic victory for the U.S. Senate suppressed their joy to express concern and worry about the fate of Vice President Kamala Harris, who joined supporters at Howard, her alma mater, awaits the results of the presidential election. Things didn't look good for Harris with the early returns.

Some Maryland Democrats left the Alsobrooks celebration early to go to the Howard campus. You missed a good party.

It was hard for Alsobrooks' supporters not to get caught up in the story of the moment and the magnitude of Alsobrooks' victory over former Gov. Larry Hogan (R), who had once again tried to overcome political adversity and voting patterns To defy Maryland by running for Senate. Gov. Wes Moore (D), himself a historic figure in state and national politics, called it “her story.”

“I don’t just see Angela as a great leader,” Moore said. “I see my daughter. I see my wife. I see my sisters. I see my mother. I see everyone who came before us and they’re all smiling tonight.”

Even Hogan recognized the significance of the moment.

“Tonight we can all be proud of the election of the first Black woman to represent Maryland in the U.S. Senate, regardless of who you voted for,” he said in a written message to supporters.

The same story repeated itself Tuesday night next door in Delaware, where U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D) was also elected to a Senate seat. On January 3, for the first time in history, two Black women, Alsobrooks and Blunt Rochester, will serve side by side on the world's largest advisory body.

“Of all the people who have served in the U.S. Senate, only three looked like me,” Alsobrooks told the cheering crowd. She also tried to inform her followers about Harris' fate.

“What you will learn tonight is that you are led by a woman, my friend Kamala Harris.”

But at this point, even the most optimistic Democrat wasn't so sure.

Earlier in the evening, before the Maryland results were announced, five large-screen televisions in the hotel ballroom broadcast MSNBC's coverage of the White House election and other races. The crowd invariably cheered at the good news for Democrats. They cheered Blunt Rochester's planned victory particularly loudly.

“Can you feel it?” asked Charlene Dukes, the vice chair of the Maryland Democratic Party. “We will make history.”

But as the night wore on, the cheers were tempered by the grim reality that Harris appeared to be trailing Republican former President Donald Trump.

“We’ve had too much post-traumatic stress disorder since 2016,” said one veteran Democrat.

“I feel great for Angela, a little nervous for Kamala,” said Prince George's County Council member Wanika Fisher (D), who, like the vice president, is half Black and half Indian-American. Fisher had previously campaigned alongside Alsobrooks in Bladensburg with First Lady Dawn Moore of Maryland and US Representative Barbara Lee (Democrat of California), who herself had unsuccessfully tried to enter the Senate earlier this year.

“That was really fun,” Fisher said.

Alsobrooks makes history in the Senate race as Hogan can't repeat his magic

When asked about the historical significance of Alsobrooks' victory and Harris' candidacy, Montgomery County Council member Laurie-Anne Sayles (D), who campaigned for Harris in Pennsylvania, replied: “When I start thinking about it and talking about it .”, I’m going to get emotional.”

At the time, she said she was still confident about Harris' prospects: “We'll be celebrating later this week.”

But as the clock ticked past 11 p.m. and Harris appeared to be stuck in the Electoral College, Sayles admitted he felt a little uneasy as he looked over the shoulder of Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich as he looked at the election results on his cell phone checked.

“I'm OK. I'm holding on,” she said.

After Alsobrooks' victory speech, which ended just before 11 p.m., the big-screen televisions came on, giving way to loud, celebratory music and dancing. But dozens of partygoers retreated to the hotel's hallways to discuss election results across the country.

One of Alsobrooks' main arguments against the election of Hogan was that his election could bring the Senate under Republican control. But it happened anyway, with the GOP winning at least three seats on Tuesday and several more still at stake.

“This is like a national disaster,” said Elrich, who predicted that Republicans' total control of the White House and possibly both chambers of Congress could wipe out the federal workforce, with devastating economic consequences for the Maryland, D.C., suburbs.

“We’re going to lose a lot of money,” he said.

Former state delegate Alice Johnson Cain (D), who represented Anne Arundel County, arrived late to Alsobrook's party after attending the victory celebration in Annapolis for State Senator Sarah K. Elfreth (D-Anne Arundel), who was elected to Congress Tuesday. Cain said it was nice to see two strong women elected to represent Maryland on Capitol Hill, but she said she felt compelled to go home to follow the president's record more closely.

“I’m scared as hell but hoping for the best,” she said.