Although a handful of polls failed to open as scheduled at 7 a.m. because of staffing shortages, the problems were all ironed out an hour later, according to Rex Quidilla, a spokesman for the Hawai'i Office of Elections.

The evening also ran longer than expected. A two and a half hour wait between the first and second printout of results kept candidates and voters on edge as they waited for the latest results from races across the state.

Polls were supposed to close at 6 p.m., but 25 were open about 7 p.m., and as of 7:21 p.m., seven polling places were still open. All closed by about 7:30 p.m.

The biggest problems occurred in several precincts where some supervisors failed to report to work. Election officials last week anticipated a shortage of about 900 poll workers, but they reported Friday that the problem had been substantially alleviated. Early today, Quidilla said, "the situation quickly went from OK to critical."

Elections officials working out of a central office used cellular phones to talk untrained workers through polling place start-up procedures, he said.

"We were especially hard-hit by the no-show bug (of workers) this year," Quidilla said. "There were some people (voters) who waited and others who went away. We hope they had the opportunity to vote later in the day. We thank the workers and the voters for their patience," Quidilla said.

Officials estimated that by 2 p.m., about 20 percent of registered voters had cast their ballots — roughly equal to the same percentage at that time in the 2004 primary election. The figures were the latest available as of 6 p.m.

In addition, as of 8 p.m. today, a record 98,940 people — 15.1 percent of eligible voters — had filled out absentee or walk-in ballots.

Today's turnout estimate was based on a survey of representative precincts throughout the state, Quidilla said.

Some election observers had noted that the high-profile U.S. Senate race and the multiple candidates for the 2nd Congressional seat could draw more voters and help turn around Hawai'i's reputation for poor participation.

Fewer than four out of every 10 registered voters turned out for the 2004 primary election, down from more than six out of 10 in the 1994 primary, state election records show. In the early 1960s more than nine out of 10 registered voters went to the polls.

Hawai'i had the nation's lowest percentage of voter turnout among voting-age adults in 2004 and 2002, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The census estimates, however, don't exclude immigrants who can't vote because they are not yet U.S. citizens, or military personnel who don't consider Hawai'i their permanent home.

Other problems reported today included the malfunctioning of eight optical ballot reading machines, a large number of spoiled ballots and several people reporting to the wrong polling place.

The number of malfunctioning machines, which were quickly replaced, was about normal for a statewide election, Quidilla said.

At one Kailua precinct, about one out of every 10 early ballots was spoiled by people voting for races in more than one party, said Jennie Lee, the precinct chairperson.

The lists of candidates on the ballots are color-coded by political affiliation to help voters to mark their choices within only one party. Those whose spoiled ballots were caught by officials or optical readers were allowed to vote again.

Use of optional electronic voting machines was very light, Quidilla said.

Myrna Ramsey, a retired bank worker, was among the early voters, saying she was drawn by interest in the Democratic Senate race between Sen. Daniel Akaka and Rep. Ed Case.

"There are so many things that need to be fixed, but year after year you don't see anything happening," Ramsey said. "I respect Sen. Akaka, but I voted for Case because it's time for a change."

Christine and Adam Cobeen of Kailua also went to the polls early. "I think the war is the issue that will bring a lot of people out to vote this year," said Christine Cobeen, a business owner who said she voted for Republican candidate Jerry Coffee in the Senate race, even though he had officially withdrawn from the race because of health problems.

If Coffee wins, Republican officials will handpick another candidate to run against the victor of the Akaka-Case race.