Nearly 2,000 people voted early in Boston as the election kicks off

Early voting kicked off this weekend across the state. In Boston, city election officials say 1,804 ballots were cast in-person during the first two days of early voting.

Polling places were mostly quiet in Boston on the state's first weekend of in-person early voting.

On Sunday at the Thelma D. Burns Building in Dorchester, many voters came after church. Most walked right up to the ballot boxes since there was no line.

"I was running errands in this area, and I had the list of places I could vote in my car, and I saw this one along the way and decided to stop," said Kim Willingham.

Claudia Smith Reed said she loves voting without the lines and hassle of Election Day.

"It's not crowded, it gives you time to sit down, think through everything and make sure you've confirmed everything you select," she said.

Over in Jamaica Plain, David Rosen cast his ballot at the Margarita Muñiz Academy.

"I wanted to be sure that I had an opportunity to vote, and didn't want to wait until Nov. 8," he said.

Early in-person voting continues through Nov. 4 (you could find locations in your community, here).

The leisurely pace of voting in Boston may mirror trends across the state.

Secretary of State Bill Galvin is predicting lower voter turnout this year than the last midterm election.

Voters could also vote by mail, for any reason, by requesting a ballot before Nov. 1 and either mailing the completed ballot back, or submitting it in a designated dropbox.

Galvin on Friday said 157,000 voters had mailed their completed ballots — a number he described as "slow" for this point in the election.