Photo: Dunlap is interviewed by NECN. 

LEWISTON – Secretary of state Matthew Dunlap walked into the Lewiston Armory and spoke to two voter protection attorneys.

“I hope you guys are bored,” he said.

They were.

Turnout today across the state has been overwhelming – and the polls have operated with very few problems.

Dunlap said he expects turnout to be at 80 to 85 percent today.

Dunlap attributed the lack of problems to careful planning, and the high turnout in part to same day registration.

He is going to different polling places around the state. He said he started in his hometown of Old Town, then went to Waterville and Portland before stopping in Lewiston. He said his next stops were Augusta and Bangor, and then he would see how far north he could get before the polls closed.

“I try to be visible and sort out any problems that come up,” Dunlap said.

Dunlap said there were long lines around the state when the polls opened. Since then, the longest lines have been at the voter registration tables.

There haven’t been any problems with candidate activity at the polls, he said.

At 1 p.m. in Lewiston, traffic was slow and steady. Dunlap said he expected a big surge around 3 or 4 pm when school let out, and then another surge in the evening before the polls close.

About 200,000 people voted absentee, Dunlap said. They fell roughly along the lines of the state’s voting demographics – 38 percent Democrat, 28 percent Republican and the rest unenrolled.