Thousands were on hand at the Washington, D.C. university, hoping to cheer the election of the first Black woman to the presidency, but early returns roiled those plans.

Kamala Harris’s election night watch party at Howard University was the first-ever held on a college campus. The evening ended on an uncertain note, but it was still a watershed moment for the HBCU.

Vice President Kamala Harris plans to spend election night in Washington, D.C., at her alma mater, Howard University, three people familiar with the planning tell NBC News.