FRAMINGHAM - Seven months after deciding to overhaul Framingham’s system of government, voters flocked to 10 polling places Tuesday to elect the first representatives of their new city government.



In addition to the mayoral race between John Stefanini and Yvonne Spicer, there were contests for all 11 seats on the City Council. Six of the nine School Committee races were contested.



Roughly 11,000 voters cast ballots in a Sept. 26 preliminary election – 27.5 percent of registered voters. Town Clerk Valerie Mulvey said last week she expected as many as 20,000 people to vote in Tuesday’s election.



A steady stream of voters visited District 6’s Keefe Technical High School around lunchtime on a chilly, overcast day, while a dozen volunteers and candidates held signs on Winter Street. By 3:50 p.m., 276 residents had voted at Wilson Elementary School in District 9.



The mayor’s race pits a relative newcomer to Framingham politics against a longtime town volunteer and politician. The candidates tussled in a series of forums and debates over the past six weeks, attacking each other's qualifications and integrity.



Voters who supported Stefanini Tuesday said in interviews with the Daily News that they liked his experience and longtime commitment to the town. Stefanini, an attorney at DLA Piper, served five terms as a state representative and two terms as a selectman.



“John has been involved in the state of Massachusetts and with the town on many different levels,” said 25-year resident Mal Duane of District 6. “And I just had a greater comfort level with this whole new government … that he was the most qualified person for the position.”



But Spicer voters like that she’s not a politician, and said she could better represent Framingham’s diverse population. Spicer, a former Framingham teacher, is vice president of advocacy and educational partnerships at the Museum of Science, Boston. She joined Town Meeting last year.



“I think she’s very competent, she’s very honest. I like the idea of having a woman mayor, and particularly a black woman mayor,” said 21-year resident Jenny Allen of District 8. “She just seems like she would be able to listen to everybody and be a fresh person on the bluff.”

At the Potter Road Elementary School, more than 100 voters passed through the door every hour, beginning when polls opened at 7 a.m. Nearly 24 percent of the 3,235 registered voters in Precinct 2 had cast ballots by 2:20 p.m.

"I think we're doing OK," Precinct Warden Maryanne Moore said. "There seems to be a lot of people interested, and they're coming out and asking if a lot of other people have been in."

Moore said most voters seem well-informed about the choices on the ballot.

"There hasn't been any real confusion..." she said. "Nobody really hesitates a long time up at the booth. They seem to come in, know what they're going to do and are doing it."

Polls close at 8 p.m. Check this metrowestdailynews.com later for update results.