The Secretary of State in Maine is predicting high turnout in the state based on the return of absentee ballots and lines at the polls today.

AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap now says voter turnout could be 50 percent rather than 35 percent.

More than 100,000 absentee ballots already have been returned to town clerks’ offices, and more than 10,000 are still outstanding. The absentee ballots will be counted after the polls close.

50% would be high for an off-year election in Maine, I’m told.

The team running the No on 1 campaign believe that high turnout – in particular high turnout among young people – would be crucial to their efforts to beat the initiative and maintain marriage equality rights in Maine. The Secretary of State tells Ben Smith that turnout is high in Bangor, home to several colleges and expected to be a strong no vote on Election Day.

What’s notable is that an issue of importance to progressive voters is yielding strong turnout. That would run counter to the message that conservatives are driving turnout on this Election Day, and that Democrats would need to move to the center as a result.

Meanwhile, to update that story about OFA sending GOTV emails on New Jersey to voters in Maine, officials at the DNC are attributing it to a glitch that only affected a small number of voters. A DNC official responded, “There may have been some Mainers who inadvertently got the email, but it was not sent to our Maine list.” If Question 1 is defeated, this could all be forgotten.

…The Portland Press-Herald has more on turnout, showing a steady stream of voters to the polls.

UPDATE: How did Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins vote? No comment. I wonder, with strong stands like that, if the Human Rights Campaign will endorse Susan Collins again.