President-elect Donald Trump gives his acceptance speech during his election night rally, Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2016, in New York. (AP Photo/John Locher)

As Donald Trump marched state by state to win the presidency, Douglas County Democrats on Tuesday evening struggled to comprehend the message of voters, while local Republicans said the message couldn’t be clearer.

“Voters are tired of what is going on, and they are ready to mix it up,” said Kathy Ammel, chair of the Douglas County GOP.

A President Trump may control the blender.

The Associated Press called the race for Trump early Wednesday morning, as Wisconsin put him over the 270 electoral votes needed to win. A spokesman for Clinton said she would not be making any announcement, or concession speech, in the early morning hours of Wednesday, but rather urged supporters to get some sleep and wait for an announcement on Wednesday after more votes had been counted.

While not conceding, local Democrats were contemplating what a Trump presidency may look like. Several, however, conceded they were having a hard time picturing it.

“If it would look like anything that happened in the debates, it would be worrisome,” said State Rep. Barbara Ballard, a longtime Democratic office holder in the county. “If that is how we would deal with other countries . . . I just can’t believe our country would choose to go in that direction.”

At the Cibo Sano restaurant in west Lawrence, about 30 people gathered for the Douglas County GOP watch party. The thought of a Trump presidency was inspiring a phrase that voters have perhaps heard before: Hope and change.

Pat Bates, a Lawrence Republican, said she believed Trump would reduce the size of government and make it more efficient. Her husband, Tom Bates, said ideas such as dismantling the Environmental Protection Agency may get serious consideration, and he said he hopes Trump will turn the economy around so there are more factory workers than government workers.

Most of all, though, he said he thinks a Trump victory would be a message that voters are tired of dishonest politicians, and he pointed to the Clintons as the prime example.

“We are tired of the corruption of the Clintons,” Tom Bates said. “Bill Clinton so damaged the presidency.”

Trump, who faces a myriad of lawsuits for his business dealings and other issues, has faced multiple questions about his temperament to hold office. Local Democrats on Tuesday indicated that was one of their larger concerns. They predicted Trump’s temperament would lead to more division.

“Donald Trump has proven, whether he wins or loses, that dividing people and tearing people apart makes for good campaign politics, but it doesn’t do anything to move our country forward,” said Douglas County Commissioner Mike Gaughan, a Democrat who also is active in Democratic politics across the state.

Local Republicans predicted Trump’s temperament would be just fine, although some said he will have to “learn some diplomacy,” and rely on qualified people to help him govern.

“I think the temperament issue has been overplayed a lot,” Ammel said. “I think he is more level-headed than most candidates have been. A lot of people just had their mind made up about him. I hope they give him a chance. I think he will govern more pragmatically than they give him credit for.”

Interviews on Tuesday provided some insight into why Trump performed better than some national pundits may have expected. Some Republicans said the abortion issue still played a major role in the race, while others simply defied the conventional wisdom many commentators had been reporting. Lawrence resident Shirley Zheng immigrated to America from China, and she said this was the first presidential election that she really became engaged in. She found Trump appealing on multiple levels.

Zheng said she liked his business experience, but particularly liked his stance on immigration issues.

“I vote for security,” Zheng said. “I want border security. I want somebody who fights the extremists. I’m really for anybody who says if you want equality, you have to earn it. You have to use your hands and your mind.”

Trump’s strong showing has surprised some local political experts. Bill Lacy is the director of the Dole Institute of Politics at KU and formerly was a professional campaign manager.

“I came into today very strongly believing that Secretary Clinton would win the election. But it’s par for the course I have consistently counted out Donald Trump, and…every time I counted the guy out he does something incredible and is able to get himself back in grace.”

What happened?

First, Lacy said, it’s been clear since the primaries that there’s anger and dissatisfaction with the establishment.

“Americans in both parties are very clearly upset with the political establishment. We saw that with Sen. (Bernie) Sanders on the democratic side running so strongly against just an extremely strong candidate in Secretary Clinton.”

Trump’s nomination illustrated a similar “disconnect” on the Republican side.

“I think basically people are fed up that the parties cannot work together at all and cannot seem to find common ground on anything,” Lacy said.

Some local leaders were beginning to look at how the country can come together on issues. The issue of how women and people with disabilities are treated likely will get much discussion, as Trump was heavily criticized for comments he made about women, people with disabilities and other marginalized populations.

Kathy Rose-Mockry is the director of KU’s Emily Taylor Center for Women & Gender Equity. Trump was not her choice for president, but she said a Trump victory would not mean all is lost.

“We can’t have that attitude. If we as a country are going to go forward, I think it’s just essential that we band together and look for a way to make the process of democracy work by making sure our voices are heard,” she said.

“We are all called upon to use this as an opportunity to highlight the disparities that exist and push to make sure women do not lose ground — and I would say not just women but all marginalized groups of people. As some of the issues have come forward and they’ve been made very visible, it does give us the opportunity to say clearly we have a lot of work yet to do in order to bring folks to the table and to make equity a reality.”

Republicans said they also hope the country comes together, if Trump is elected president. But they also noted it will require people who were viscerally opposed to Trump to give him a chance.

“I think his opponents are jumping to a lot of conclusions,” Pat Bates said. “I think they need to give him a chance. We honestly believe he will do the right thing for the country.”