Alright, it's virtually all over. It's been horrible. We're not dead though.

The War of the Triple Alliance, in which Paraguay fought, and lost to, the combined forces of Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, saw the male population of Paraguay reduced by 70%. As a Liberal Democrat this morning, it feels a lot like that at the moment. And, of course, it isn't over yet. There are still local elections to be counted and it would be naive to expect any encouragement from those.

So, what now? What can, or should, Liberal Democrats do?

Firstly, don't panic. Yes, it's bad, yes, it's awful. There is no consolation sufficient to shelter behind. But, despite everything, something like 2.5 million voters still turned out to vote Liberal Democrat, even after five years of cuts, of having to make and defend some very difficult positions. That is a base upon which we can rebuild.

Second, we are in opposition. Even if the Conservatives come in search of our support in the Commons, we are better off out of it. There are going to be more cuts, more pain, and voters are about to discover what Conservatives are capable without having Liberal Democrats to restrain them. Personally, I hope that those on the left whose vitriol did so much to undermine us in Conservative-facing seats dwell on the outcome and learn the lessons. I'm not optimistic.

Next, policy. What are we actually about? We need a positive vision for our country, rethinking the very concept of the nation state (devolution, Europe), about what government is for (form and function).

We also need to decide if we are going to play the political game in the same way. Is 'looking like a party of government' something that works for us or against? For the record, I'd say that it doesn't - the media don't like us and never will. Our social media campaign was extremely good, and if there was a positive from the campaign, that (and fundraising) was it. We need to focus on our message and our ideas and talk about beliefs.

One last thing. Whilst the Conservatives will have a majority in the Commons, the position is very different in the Lords. One hundred Liberal Democrat peers will find themselves in a key position until, presumably, the Conservatives appoint enough Peers to change that. They'll need at least one hundred though. In the meantime, they represent an opportunity for us to hold the Government to account. It will be interesting to see whether the Party's approach towards our Parliamentary Party in the Lords changes.

And now, I'm off to face our European sister parties. At least they'll be sympathetic...