Despite historic numbers of people casting absentee ballots because of the coronavirus pandemic, hundreds of thousands of Connecticut voters were still expected to vote in person Tuesday for races including the presidential election.

Lines were long across the state as polls opened at 6 a.m. But election officials said 6-foot social distancing rules could make things appear worse than they really are, and they expected the lines to move quickly. In many places, the lines were gone by mid-morning.

About half of Connecticut's 2.3 million registered voters had voted either in person or by absentee ballot as of noon Tuesday with eight hours of voting remaining, according to Secretary of the State Denise Merrill's office. Turnout in the 2016 presidential election in the state was about 77%.

Stephen Gauvin, 67, of Norwich, said he had to wait in line for about 20 minutes in the morning to vote for former Vice President Joe Biden for president.

“I have been so motivated for the last four years to do something about this situation,” he said. "I’ve been chomping at the bit. Twenty minutes isn’t really that bad, but it was the longest line I’ve ever seen at this polling location.”

The pandemic did not keep Mary Goncar from voting in person in Glastonbury. The 87-year-old retired bank manager said residents have been very good at wearing masks and social distancing in public places. She voted for Republicans, including President Donald Trump.

“He’s done a lot for the country, a lot more than the Republicans in the past,” she said, adding she was worried about protests by Democrats if Trump wins.

State Democrats were hoping that broad support for Biden around the state, coupled with opposition to Trump, would benefit their candidates down the ballot.

But Republicans noted there is still strong support for Trump in parts of the state.

“The hatred for Trump only brings you so far. And I think voters want to hear from their state reps and state senators on what they’re going to do for them,” said Rep. Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, who is seeking to be the next Republican leader in the state House of Representatives. He said voters still care about the affordability of living in Connecticut and the state economy, two issues he believes benefit the GOP.

Republicans have also been critical of a wide-ranging police reform bill that was passed during a special legislative session earlier this year.

Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney, D-New Haven, said he believes Democrats have plenty of successes to run on, including the police bill, minimum wage increases and a new family medical leave program that begins in 2022. He said Democrats, who control the Senate, 22-14, have opportunities to pick up some seats.

“I think it’s going to be a good year for us," he said.

All 151 seats in the Democratic-controlled General Assembly are on the ballot, although a handful of the races are uncontested. All five incumbent Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives are up for reelection.

The congressional races receiving the most attention have included those of Rep. Jahana Hayes, who is seeking a second term in the 5th Congressional District in northwestern Connecticut, and Rep. Rosa DeLauro in the 3rd District in south-central Connecticut. Her campaign ran television ads defending her record for the first time in about two decades as she seeks a 16th term.

Her opponent, real estate executive Margaret Streicker, had raised nearly $1.4 million as of Oct. 14, $1 million of it of her own funds. Streicker has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on TV ads, many critical of DeLauro, who raised nearly $1.7 million.

Hayes, who in 2018 became the first Black woman elected to Congress to represent Connecticut, is facing a strong challenge from retired federal prosecutor David X. Sullivan. While Hayes has raised more money, Sullivan has received endorsements from police unions throughout the diverse district and also has been running TV ads.

State election officials have warned voters it could take days for the final results to be counted, considering the large number of absentee ballots. While state legislators, who agreed to make COVID-19 an allowable excuse for voting absentee this year, allowed local registrars to begin the process of opening the ballots on the Friday before the election, they won't be actually counted until Election Day.

As of Sunday, nearly 600,000 absentee ballots had been filled out and returned to town and city clerks. That's in contrast to the 129,480 absentee ballots that were received statewide in the 2016 presidential election. While historic, the 600,000 absentee voters are still roughly one quarter of the state's total registered voters.

Connecticut traditionally has a high voter participation rate. Merrill has said this year's rate could be as high as 80%. Also, this year there are about 700,000 more new registered voters since four years ago.

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Associated Press writers Pat Eaton-Robb in Columbia, Connecticut, and Dave Collins in Glastonbury, Connecticut, contributed.

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Find AP’s full election coverage at APNews.com/Election2020.