PARIS — Despite heavy rains, turnout for annual town election has been steady all morning in Paris where voters were expected to turn out in heavy numbers to vote on a proposal to disband the Paris Police Department and a race for the Board of Selectmen.

Town Clerk Elizabeth Knox said 300 voters had passed through the polls by 1 p.m., including four or five who registered to vote at the polls. Voters in that town are also casting ballots in a four-way race for two seats on the Board of Selectmen and on a referendum question to approve a $35.9 million Oxford Hills School District budget for the next fiscal year.

Turnout throughout the area towns who have uncontested ballots or just the school budget referendum question was slow, except for the town of Norway which had 80 voters come through the polls by 2 p.m., according to Town Clerk Shirley Boyce. Norway voters are casting ballots on both uncontested races and the school budget referendum.

In Oxford, which has uncontested races and the school budget referendum question on the ballot, only 35 voters had cast ballots by mid day, said Town Clerk Ellen Morrison. Morrison said the turnout was expected to be low and, because of that, she hoped to save money by hand counting all the tallies rather than using the electronic counting machine.

In other towns that only have the school referendum question on the ballot, turnout was even more bleak. Waterford had about 8 voters and Otisfield, 19, by 1:30 p.m.

Polls close in all towns at 8 p.m.

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