No political party likes to lose a seat, particularly one with iconic symbolism.
But the loss of North Antrim comes with two significant strands of silver lining for the DUP.
Ian Paisley Jnr had been a thorn in the side of the party leadership for most of the past decade. No more.
Traditional Unionist Voice leader had been a very vocal and effective thorn in the side of the party at Stormont. But no more.
When I spoke to senior DUP members about the demise of Ian Paisley Jr in the early hours of this morning, they expressed shock and surprise, but not sympathy.
"No party likes to lose a seat in an election," said one of their strategists.
"What about the loss of someone as high profile as Ian Paisley?" I asked.
"Like I said, no party likes to lose a seat," was the reply.
The son of the party's founder - the Rev Ian Paisley - made no secret of his desire to one day take the reigns at the helm of the party his father founded.
Shortly after Arlene Foster was appointed leader to succeed Peter Robinson, I met a senior DUP source with the ear of 'Junior' - as he was known within media and political circles.
They confidently predicted that at some point in the future, what they called "The House of Paisley" would be restored, with Junior at the head of the table.
In the years since, senior party officials and elected representatives often expressed dismay at some of the actions and words of the MP for North Antrim.
When Arlene Foster announced in April 2021 that she would resign as DUP leader, after more than 20 of the party's Stormont Assembly members and four of its MPs signed a letter of no confidence, Ian Paisley Jr was suspected of being one of the key conspirators.
He then backed Edwin Poots in the subsequent leadership battle with Jeffrey Donaldson, and was jubilant when his preferred candidate prevailed.
When Edwin Poots was himself forced to resign after just 21 days and was succeeded by Jeffrey Donaldson, many within the party said Paisley's days of influence were coming to an end.
But even his harshest critics within the party did not see this coming.
The House of Paisley has fallen and is unlikely to be restored.
There is also a huge added bonus for the DUP.
Jim Allister has been a one-man wrecking ball for the party in recent years, galvanising anti-Protocol unionists and loyalists.
The TUV leader has been a constant and effective critic in the Stormont Assembly, with pithy put downs and one liners that grab media attention.
Many of his critics within the chamber privately acknowledge that he has punched well above his party's electoral weight.
Now he is moving to Westminster where his voice will be one of 650 seeking to be heard and his contributions, and media appearances, will be far less frequent.
Two painful thorns have been removed.
