When Barack Obama won reelection on November 6th, defeating Mitt Romney, the victory marked the end of what many experts had predicted would be the closest presidential race in recent history.
It was also an election with a lot at stake for women. The two presidential candidates had very different scripts when it came to discussing the gender pay gap, reproductive rights, access to health care, climate change and economic policy. And the role female voters would play in deciding the election received more attention from pundits, the media and the candidates themselves than during any campaign in recent memory.
In addition to supporting Obama over Romney, women voters helped defeat male GOP candidates Todd Akin, Richard Mourdock, Tom Smith and Joe Walsh, who together proved several times over how little they understood about courting female voters.
Women on both sides of the political aisle had a lot to say about the election results Tuesday night. Republican Meghan McCain (and daughter of 2008 presidential candidate John McCain) tweeted:
Singer (and Obama supporter) Solange Knowles summed up what many Democratic women felt by the time major news organization started projecting an Obama win:
Check out other women's reactions below and share your own in the comments.
LOOK: Women React To The 2012 Presidential Election