RALEIGH – With numbers from the first days of early voting coming in we can get the first real look at enthusiasm turned into votes. Right out of the gate the Republicans are strong, beating first days early voting numbers from 2016.

North Carolina:

2018 Day 1 Early Voting
133,502 ballots cast
57,449 Democrats (43%)
40,840 Republican (30.5%)
34,443 Unaffiliated (25.7%)

2016 Day 1 Early Voting
165,938 ballots cast
87,056 Democrats (52.5%)
40,602 Republicans (24.5%)
37,937 Unaffiliated (22.9%)

Trending: Cooper, Democrats Demanding Medicaid Expansion. Will Republicans Give In?

— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) October 19, 2018

Republicans actually cast more ballots on the first day of North Carolina early voting in 2018 than in 2016.

— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) October 19, 2018

And here’s 2014

2014 Day 1 Early Voting

122,012 ballots cast
61,839 Democrats (50.7%)
35,987 Republican (29.5%)
24,015 Unaffiliated (19.7%)

— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) October 19, 2018

North Carolina Day 1 Early Voting

1. Democrats DOWN 7.7% from 2014, 9.5% from 2016.

2. Republicans UP 1% from 2014, 6% from 2016.

3. Unaffiliated UP 6% from 2014, 2.8% from 2016.

— Phil Kerpen (@kerpen) October 19, 2018

That looks more like a blue cliff than a blue wave. You’d have thought, by the media amplification of Democratic campaigns messaging, that the first days would be cresting turn out from the Left. At least in the early going, that doesn’t seem to be the case at all.