Uh-oh. If this holds up, Barack Obama may not have such a great day after all in North Carolina. According to the elections director and in opposition to the early reports from the precincts, voter turnout has not been all that remarkable:

Few problems were reported Tuesday as voters cast ballots in presidential and state primaries that were expected to break turnout records.

State elections director Gary Bartlett said turnout was “steady … not tremendously heavy.” The presidential nomination seemed to overshadow primaries for governor, Senate and statewide office.

This comes in an update to a story by WRAL that had predicted twice the normal turnout. This makes sense anyway, since North Carolina rarely has much of an impact on presidential primaries, and the large turnout was thought to favor Barack Obama. A smaller turnout might indicate a loss of momentum for Obama or perhaps election fatigue overall.

Polls close in a few hours, and we’ll find out whether Bartlett is proven correct or the media’s predictions instead. (h/t: Southern Gent)