Democrats started election night feeling genuinely optimistic about Vice President Harris’s chance of becoming the nation’s first female president.

But as the evening wore on and former President Trump began to surpass 200 electoral votes, Democrats said they began to get the same sinking feeling they had eight years ago when Trump shocked the political world and defeated Hillary Clinton.

“I've got a gnawing 2016 PTSD feeling in the pit of my stomach,” one Democratic strategist said.

“This is beginning to feel eerily similar to 2016,” another strategist said. “We came in tonight thinking our chances were good. The internals were showing a path and a chance of winning most of the battlegrounds.”

Democrats speaking before cameras were more careful with their wording, but the worries came through.

“Loudoun County, Virginia’s not great. Think Dulles Airport, suburban Washington — [I] think [President Biden] was like 62 percent in 2020. I’m seeing 57, 58........

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