US stocks fell sharply on Thursday, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite sliding more than 5% in a single session as investors dumped artificial-intelligence-related shares. The decline came just two days after Republicans suffered setbacks in the midterm elections, and President Trump turned his criticism on voters who did not back Republican candidates and their policy agenda.

Trump said in a social media post that the market drop was linked to Democrats’ victory in Tuesday’s election, and argued that voters should bear responsibility for the outcome. He also referred to Democrats in mocking terms, striking a sharply confrontational tone.

The market turbulence was tied to shifts in post-election policy expectations. After Tuesday’s midterm results, a slate of candidates who support tighter regulation of artificial intelligence won, raising investor concerns that future restrictions could constrain AI expansion, data-center construction and related activities. AI has long been a key driver of tech stock gains, so rising regulatory expectations can quickly weigh on the sector.

The selloff also appeared to be a delayed reaction. On Wednesday, when early election results began to become clearer, US stocks briefly rose, and Trump credited the rebound to his own policies and governing record. By Thursday, however, sentiment reversed rapidly, and capital began flowing out of technology assets.

Late Thursday, US stock index futures continued to fall in premarket trading, while Asian markets came under broad pressure. If the trend persists, global markets could still face significant volatility on Friday.