In this upside-down year in North Carolina politics - where a Democratic presidential candidate could win the state's electoral votes and the next governor could be a Republican - maybe it's unremarkable that GOP leaders in the state Senate are optimistic.
     
The minority in the chamber for more than a century, the GOP believes they can pick up some seats being vacated by outgoing Democrats, or where incumbents have faced bad personal or political publicity. A few more wins in GOP-leaning districts, they say, and the Democrats' 31-19 lead in the chamber could vanish in a "change" election year.
     
"It's not a good year to be an incumbent, and I think that's coming through more than we've ever imagined," said Sen. Tom Apodaca, R-Henderson, the Senate's deputy Republican leader. "We are heavily at-play in some districts that we never thought we would be."
     
Still, a Republican takeover seems a longshot. Senate Democrats have a large fundraising advantage and a top-notch political organization, and believe their colleagues across the aisle are all wrong.
     
People's eyes are all on the economy, they argue, and voters blame President Bush and congressional Republicans for the downturn. With North Carolina faring better than the rest of the country - thanks to legislative Democrats, they say - and an expected wave of votes for Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, voters will keep the Senate in Democratic hands.
     
"I think we'll do quite well," said Senate Majority Leader Tony Rand, D-Cumberland. "Our candidates have been successful in the areas that are thought to be Republican areas. It's sort of business as usual."