The S&P/ASX200 fell 52.3 points on Wednesday, down 0.59 per cent, to 8834.5, as the broader All Ordinaries lost 54 points, or 0.6, per cent, to 8954.9.
BHP and Rio Tinto weighed heavily with drops of more than two per cent, as copper prices hit their lowest levels since July, while real estate handed back Tuesday's gains.
"The proverbial "blue wave" has been much more emphatic than expected," Capital.com senior market analyst Kyle Rodda told AAP.
"This brings all sorts of risks to the AI build out in the United States, both from the infrastructure build-out as well as regulation, and you can see those ripple effects on the ASX200."
The election result was a clear rejection of President Donald Trump's agenda, eBury chief economist Enrique Diaz-Alvarez said.
"We now look to two years of legislative paralysis and struggle between the executive and legislative branches, with the US economy in autopilot, which may not be a bad thing," he said.
"Stocks and the US dollar are reacting negatively, but the moves are very subdued."
Gold stocks broadly slumped despite precious metals appreciating against a weaker greenback, with spot gold trading hands at $US3981 ($A5705) an ounce.
The energy sector performed well as oil prices steadied from an overnight dip, while consumer staples and utilities stocks benefited as investors ducked for cover.
The Brent crude contract is trading near $US104 a barrel, firming over the session as investors weigh the odds the Trump administration will escalate its conflict with Iran over the two months before the Democrat-led Congress is sworn in on January 3.
Consumer cyclicals dropped 0.7 per cent in a broad-based sell-down, despite resilient September household spending growth of 0.6 per cent.
However, the figure effectively pre-dated the 50 basis points in cash rate increases the Reserve Bank had handed down since, VanEck investments and capital markets head Russel Chesler said.
"We expect October household spending to start to show signs of slowing," Mr Chesler said.
"We still believe that Black Friday sales will give a better indication of how the two rate hikes are affecting consumers' wallets and generally the sentiment as we head into the Christmas period."
In company news, department store chain David Jones could be on the verge of voluntary administration, following reports talks with its landlords had broken down.
Online graphic design platform Canva will cut or relocate almost 1300 jobs in a major restructure, impacting more than a fifth of its total workforce.
The Australian dollar is buying 69.83 US cents, up from 69.79 US cents on Tuesday at 5pm.
ON THE ASX:
* The S&P/ASX200 fell 52.3 points, or 0.59 per cent, to 8834.5.
* The broader All Ordinaries lost 54 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 8954.9.
One Australian dollar trades for:
* 69.83 US cents, from 69.79 US cents on Tuesday at 5pm AEDT
* 110.36 Japanese yen, from 110.17 Japanese yen
* 62.15 euro cents, from 62.35 euro cents
* 51.88 British pence, from 52.02 pence
* 124.61 NZ cents, from 124.03 NZ cents
