Voters trickled to polls this morning to see familiar names on ballots, but unfamiliar ways to mark their choices.

Statewide and in Warren County, precincts will remain open until 7 p.m. with nominating a Democrat in Mississippi’s 2nd Congressional District as the key race.

U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, in the House since 1993, is being challenged by frequent candidate Dorothy &#8220Dot” Benford of Jackson and state Rep. Chuck Espy of Clarksdale.

Thompson has never carried Warren County, but has been a dominant force across the remainder of the mostly Delta district that stretches from Tunica to Jefferson counties.

Today’s winner advances to face the Republican nominee, Tchula Mayor Yvonne R. Brown, in the Nov. 7 general election.

Also on ballots are Democratic hopefuls for U.S. Senate. State Rep. Erik Fleming of Clinton, James O’Keefe of Long Beach and Catherine Starr of Hattiesburg are vying to face the Republican incumbent, Sen. Trent Lott, and Libertarian Party candidate Harold Taylor of Nesbit in November.

Diebold touch-screen voting machines purchased by a federal-state grant supplemented by county funds were frazzling nerves, but most were performing well.

Workers were still setting up some machines at the precinct at Sherman Avenue Elementary School when voters began arriving at 7 a.m., poll co-manager Jan Whatley said.

There were no lines, so poll workers had a chance to finish doing &#8220all the thousands of things they have to do,” to prepare for voting using the new machines, Whatley said, adding that poll workers’ tasks include &#8220all these little technical things that I would’ve never thought of.”

Frustration was clear at the American Legion box. That precinct had six of the new machines but none was working for the first 25 minutes polls were open, and at least 10 voters were delayed. &#8220They’re not working at all,” manager Marilyn Patterson said. &#8220We’re having problems.”

Voters were offered the chance to cast affidavit ballots or to return later in the day.

At No. 7 Fire Station, poll workers were all involved in explaining how to cast a ballot on the ATM-like devices.

&#8220Nobody gives a hoot about this election,” poll worker John Smith said, and he predicts a very small turnout.

Another worker disagreed, saying the &#8220voters will come.”

Cherrie McClelland arrived at the polling place at 6:40 a.m., and was the first to vote at No. 7, but by 7:15 a.m., only five people had cast ballots.

One poll worker summed it up like this: &#8220If this election isn’t thrown out, I’ll eat my hat.”

Early voting was brisk at Vicksburg Auditorium, where a dozen voters were lined up at the new touch-screen voting machines by 7:15 a.m. &#8220It’s going pretty well so far,” poll manager Carla Jones said.

&#8220I liked it, but it’s still a little confusing. I still like the other ones. I’ll have to get used to this,” said voter Charles Miller, 78.

At the Kings Community Center, machines there were ready to go, but poll workers were still working out details such as loading the paper rolls that record the vote.

&#8220It is going well, though,” poll manager Joann Parks said.

The Diebold machines, funded by the Help America Vote Act, were displayed at the courthouse, taken around to the civic clubs and other events, but there’s still a lot of unfamiliarity.

&#8220Only two people knew how to operate the machine,” said Roy Turcotte at Vicksburg Junior High. &#8220Everybody’s getting instruction.”

Cedar Grove precinct on Elizabeth Circle had 39 voters just after 8:30, manager O.A. Williams said. The low turnout was not uncommon for a primary, he added. Machines were working fine, with few people having to ask for instruction. &#8220This election is always slow,” Williams said.

Thompson is a former Bolton mayor and Hinds County supervisor. He defeated several other candidates, including Chuck Espy’s father, Henry Espy, to win the 2nd District post after Mike Espy – brother of Henry and uncle of Chuck – left Congress to become President Clinton’s first Secretary of Agriculture.

The 2nd District is the only one of Mississippi’s four congressional districts with a majority-black population, and all the candidates running this year are black.

Mike Espy held a news conference Monday in his Jackson law office to release copies of a sworn statement he took Sunday from Irene Brown of Bolivar County. In it, Brown said the county Democratic chairwoman, Jerry Adams, has tried to sway poll workers to support Thompson.

Brown has been a poll worker for more than a decade. She said that during a training session this year, Adams told poll workers that if a voter requests help, a worker should instruct the voter to press the third position on the ballot. That would be a vote for Thompson.

Adams, who works in Thompson’s Bolivar County congressional office, would not comment on Brown’s allegations Monday. Adams said she is not involved in running today’s election.