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DALLAS — It’s 8:31 p.m., and the Alabama U.S. Senate runoff has been called; Judge Roy Moore is the winner. The official results at the time of his victory were the following: With 46% of precincts reporting, Judge Roy Moore had 117,729 votes (57.1%) and former Alabama Attorney General, Senator Luther Strange had 88,341 votes (42.9%).

In simple Southern vernacular, Roy Moore took Luther Strange behind the woodshed.

But there’s a much greater beating that occurred here, too, and just like in Virginia when a college professor named Dave Brat defeated House of Representatives Majority Leader Eric Cantor, the GOP establishment just got whipped.

There was a strong message sent to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell: a message of clear rejection.

The GOP establishment, under Senator McConnell’s guidance, poured millions of dollars into Alabama to defeat Roy Moore, and they failed; the consequences of “excessive expectations” hit the majority leader square in the face. Republicans’ inability to live up to the promise of “repealing and replacing” the Affordable Care Act was reflected in the electorate’s message.

There were battle lines drawn, and what the GOP elites just found out is that their days are numbered. The people don’t trust the current GOP leadership and, therefore, they’ve taken it upon themselves to “drain the swamp.”

Now, let’s just put something to rest: I read that the Democrats are now planning to dump some $30 million into Alabama to win the Senate race. Well, this will be another futile effort by the progressive, socialist left, just like their recent efforts on behalf of Jon Ossoff and against Karen Handel in Atlanta’s congressional district. Perhaps the Democrats will move Ossoff to Alabama — it’s not that far from Atlanta … Oops, nah, maybe they’ll just leave him in Georgia and he’ll run for the Alabama Senate seat.

Yes, that’s how absurd the notion of the Democrats winning a statewide election in Alabama would be.

And no, there are no conservative Democrats left — no more Blue Dogs — and no one’s going to fool Alabamians into believing that one exists who’d actually take on Chuck Schumer.

So Judge Roy Moore is indeed the next senator from the state of Alabama. And, now that we’ve dispelled any thoughts about the Democrats winning that U.S. Senate race, let’s move on to reality.

First, you can now expect that, if you’re an establishment GOP type, you’re going to be challenged. Every GOP U.S. House or Senate member that has been an obstructionist to the pro-growth economic agenda — namely tax and healthcare reform — is at risk.

I would clearly see Arizona Senator Jeff Flake going down in defeat. And this will all happen in concert with the defeat of Democrats in “red states” won by President Trump -West Virginia and North Dakota come to mind. But worrying about Nancy Pelosi or Chuck Schumer regaining control of the House or Senate is a pipe dream — especially after all this race-baiting, NFL-kneeling, disrespect of our nation.

What’ll happen next year is a true purging of the progressives — and that has nothing to do with having an R or a D after your name. It’s all about your perspective on the relationship between the individual American citizen and the institution of government, and which one you think is sovereign or supreme.

And the lesson that the Mitch McConnell wing of the GOP has just learned is the same one that Hillary Clinton should have learned: No amount of money can overpower the will of the people. And the will of the people is to save and restore this Republic.

Look for constitutional conservative primary challengers everywhere next year. And these will not be fluke candidates; they’ll be qualified.

But there remains a looming question: Will the GOP establishment secretly work to undermine Judge Roy Moore in the general election?

Second, President Trump has learned a very hard lesson: Don’t side with the GOP establishment. And now, the question will be whether President Trump will endorse any other candidates in GOP primaries, or just sit them out? He went down into Huntsville, Alabama (Rep. Mo Brooks’ area) to campaign for Senator Luther Strangelast week, and even in his appearance seemed to hedge his endorsement.

Rep. Brooks had finished third in the race, and Moore ended up winning the Huntsville area because Brooks endorsed him, with his folks following his lead. Going forward the question will be: Who will want a Trump endorsement in 2018?

Needless to say, President Trump now has learned that he should either stay out of GOP primary races … or certainly he should not go with GOP establishment candidates. The biggest damage for him may be his ego in this regard.

Lastly, no, I don’t see the progressive, socialist left returning to power in Washington, D.C. Their reaction to the loss of Hillary Clinton last November has tainted them, possibly beyond repair. They’ve become a coastal, urban elite party, centered on radicalism on college campuses and racial division.

But what I do see happening is a sort of Tea Party 2.0 movement that will be far more astute and aware, and that’s being guided by a strategist named Steve Bannon. If Bannon is at the helm of this movement, you can bet that he will be successful — and IRS intimidation will not thwart his efforts.

Doggone it, it’s all gonna be fun to watch in 2018!

Congratulations, Judge Roy Moore, the future senator from the great state of Alabama. I might add that, being a University of Tennessee graduate, I don’t often offer congratulations to folks from Alabama. LOL.

[Learn more about Allen West’s vision for this nation in his book Guardian of the Republic: An American Ronin’s Journey to Faith, Family and Freedom]