Some more caveats than usual this go-round: These preliminary numbers only take into account viewing done until 11 p.m. Bernie Sanders’ much-anticipated speech endorsing Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton plowed through the primetime barrier and didn’t end until nearly 11:30 on the East Coast. Since Sanders’ speech was highly anticipated, though, and followed a burst of social media activity surrounding Michelle Obama and Elizabeth Warren’s speeches, and given that people may have tuned in to their local news and simply stayed with Sanders’ speech, there could be an upward adjustment once the final numbers come in later this afternoon.
That said, the preliminary broadcast ratings for night one of the DNC are a little higher than those of the RNC: The DNC clocked in with 10.54 million total viewers and a 2.5 demo rating. The RNC weighed in with 10.1 million total and a 2.3 demo rating. Cable ratings released later this afternoon will give a fuller picture.
For comparison’s sake, the first night of the 2012 DNC drew about 600,000 more total viewers in early broadcast ratings (11.14 million), and a 2.6 in the demo.
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