When the polling stations in Norway closed and the Norwegian media's first forecast was announced, a deafening cheer rose on the Social Democratic Labor Party's vigil.
As the votes were counted, the conviction was strengthened that it is precisely the AP that forms the government, and that eight years with Erna Solbergs Høyre at the helm are over.
AP representatives admittedly emphasized that it is the final result that counts, but the feeling of certainty of victory was clear and the celebration began already there at 21 o'clock.
This is despite the fact that the Labor Party seems to be backing down in voter support once again and today is much weaker than during the party's happiest glory days.
The fight for four percent
But that the AP would be commissioned to form a new government has been in line with opinion polls for some time.
The real nail-biter rather offered the smaller parties, those who stayed around the crucial four percent barrier.
The Socialist-Marxist Red and the Green Party MDG on the left flank and the Liberal Left and the Christian People's Party on the right - two parties that were both part of Erna Solberg's government.
The closer the evening went to a full vote count, the more secure both the Liberal Party's and Rødt's seat in the Storting seemed to be, but just before midnight the fate was still unclear for both the MDGs and the Christian People's Party.
A walker on both sides.
Much of the election movement's focus, especially during the last sprint, has come to be about which parties come in and which ones miss or go out.
From the larger perspective, it has been about what a future AP-led government can really look like.
With almost all votes counted, it seems to be possible for the Social Democratic "dream coalition" together with the Center Party and the Socialist Left Party.
Who's coming in?
But it is not all about exactly which parties are part of a future government.
Which parties will take a seat in the Storting over the next four years also plays a role in the Norwegian political landscape, in addition to the fact that it plays a major role in the parties themselves.
An example is how the environmental party MDG can end up outside, a party that has gained a lot of space, not least in the international media.
When the dust has settled after election night, when the winners brushed off the confetti and the losers wiped away the tears, the question will be how Norway's future political direction will be.
The fact that the AP seems to be able to bring together its coalition of wishes contributes on that point with some predictability, compared with the situation that they would have had to bring in additional support from another party.
At the same time, the formation of a government is usually a game of negotiation with tough compromises that are characterized by both giving and taking. What the outcome will actually be will only become clear when that process is complete.