Minutes before the clock struck 7 a.m. on Tuesday, a small line of voters gathered outside of the Swampscott High School doors, ready to cast their ballots when the polls officially opened.

As the voters waited for the green light, volunteers inside finalized their preparations, readying their stations for the long day ahead.

A steady flow of voters entered the town’s lone polling location in the first 20 minutes of the voting period, which stretches from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Most who decided to vote early in the day said they came to get it out of the way before work.

“I’m used to coming early in the morning for every election before work,” said Miriam Coffey.

Coffey said she makes sure her vote counts in each of the Democratic Primary races.

Haley Farrar-Muir and Adam Muir also were a part of the early crowd, stopping by the polling location before they went off to work for the day. Farrar-Muir said the pair was interested in the race for the 6th Congressional District seat. The federal position is open after Rep. Seth Moulton decided to run against Sen. Ed Markey for the open Senate seat. The Democratic ballots list Bethany Andres-Beck; Jamie Belsito; John Beccia; Dan Koh; State Rep. Tram Nguyen; and Dr. Mariah Lancaster, who announced their withdrawal over the weekend.

“We came to vote for Dan Koh,” said Farrar-Muir.

After the initial rush, activity slowed down until just after 8 a.m. Town Clerk Katie Dupont sat at a table just inside the door, welcoming voters and helping voters remember their precincts.

“Yesterday afternoon we came by and set up all of the voting booths, the tables and most of the framework for the polling location,” said Dupont.

Dupont said she arrived at the high school around 5:45 a.m. Tuesday with a police officer to finish setting up. Clerks and wardens began arriving around 6 a.m.

“The people we have are dedicated and they love to serve as poll workers for the community,” said Dupont. “They say every time they are excited to come back.”

The very first voter of the morning even expressed interest in helping out for next spring’s Town Election, said Dupont.

“I think it’s a positive thing in our community that so many people want to get involved,” she said.

Dupont estimated that 10% of Swampscott residents voted early or by mail, and she hoped that another 10% would come in person Tuesday.

“The last state primary in Swampscott we made 19.7% turnout so we’re trying to equal that or beat that hopefully today,” said Dupont.