ane Phinney is beginning to panic. The town clerk of tiny Savoy will oversee her first election Tuesday, and everything has to be shipshape when the village's only polling station opens.
That means the election warden, police officer, and voting inspectors have to be in place at 7 a.m. There will be coffee, and chili, and raspberry squares for the workers, and 400 freshly printed ballots for the townspeople of this hill town near North Adams.
Of course, there is something that might really add excitement, if only Savoy could get one - a contested political race.
Like every other community in Berkshire and Franklin counties, Savoy has no political races on the election ballot. Not for US Senate, US House, state Senate, state House of Representatives, or even Governor's Council.
That doesn't mean the polls can be shuttered. State law requires the will of the people to be heard, even if only one choice per race appears on the ballot.
So, at a cost of $1.4 million to the state, and local outlays ranging from hundreds of dollars to the thousands, the show must go on. Besides the political slumber party in the western part of the state, no contested races will appear on the ballots in Chelsea, Revere, Winthrop, and several communities in Worcester County.
''Unfortunately, a lot of trees have had to die for no good reason,'' the secretary of state, William Galvin, said.
Galvin, whose office must provide ballots for every precinct, predicts the ho-hum election may threaten the record-low turnout of 11.8 percent set in the 1996 primary.
Indeed, the somnolence is so pronounced in this primary that 93 of 160 state representatives, and 21 of 40 state senators, are running unopposed.
For Congress, two Democratic incumbents have challengers. US Representative Richard E. Neal is facing Joseph R. Fountain of Springfield in the 2d District. Representative Martin T. Meehan is pitted against Joseph F. Osbaldeston of Ayer and Thomas P. Tierney of Framingham in the 5th District.
In the 6th District, Republicans Frederick T. Golder and Paul McCarthy, both of Lynnfield, have a showdown to run against US Representative John F. Tierney.
And, lest the electorate forget, there are four Democratic primaries for Governor's Council.
Phinney does not expect many of Savoy's registered voters to trek to the senior center to decide whether to mark the only names listed on the ballot. Keep in mind that Savoy is a place where the most exciting political event of the year, Phinney said, was the unexpected appearance of GOP Senate candidate Jack E. Robinson at Town Hall.
But to Phinney, the election - interest or not - is part of her job.
''I'll have to be there at 6:30 in the morning anyway, to be sure everything's there even if we won't have 50 voters,'' Phinney said.
The check-in desk will be staffed by two paid workers, one from each major party. Ditto for the check-out desk. And because the state requires Savoy's only polling precinct to be open for 13 hours, the workers there are making plans to keep their batteries charged.
''They'll bring almost a potluck dinner with them because it's a long day. There's a little kitchenette down there, where they can keeps things hot, and everyone stays the whole day,'' Phinney said.
For Galvin, what is even more alarming than the absence of races in the western part of the state is the lack of interest in the traditional political caldron of Suffolk County.
''On my ballot in Brighton, from top to bottom, the only contest is for Governor's Council,'' Galvin said.
Throughout Boston, the only legislative primaries involve two Democratic incumbents. Senator Dianne Wilkerson of Roxbury is facing Hassan A. Williams, and Representative Shirley Owens-Hicks of Mattapan is being challenged by Shirley Shillingford.
''For this to be the case in Suffolk County, where the Democratic primary is tantamount to an election, is amazing,'' Galvin said.
The city of Worcester should feel a buzz Tuesday, Galvin said. A political domino effect has created incumbent-free races for two state representative seats and one state Senate chair. In addition, Mayor Raymond V. Mariano is stepping down to run for clerk of courts.
But all around the Worcester area, with the exception of a slice of the state near Springfield, the action will be nearly nil.
And the no-contest phenomenon also will hit politically wired Chelsea, where City Clerk Robert Bishop said he'll be surprised if the turnout exceeds 15 percent.
''To tell you the truth, it doesn't matter to us how many people vote. We still have to keep the place open,'' Bishop said of the city's 10 polling stations. ''But it'll be a long day for our workers. It'll be very boring for them Tuesday.''
Bishop said the city's share of the election bill will be about $13,000 for poll workers and police.
However, Galvin said, that's the price of democracy. ''What's the alternative? That we'll cheap it out, and say we won't pay for an election now?'' he asked. ''This is the most important thing that I think we do.''
