Boston University students once again stayed away from campus polling places during yesterday’s general election, though poll site workers reported slight increases in student interest over past years.

The scene was quiet at 111 Cummington St., with a slow trickle composed primarily of students coming to vote throughout the day. Approximately 252 of several thousand voters registered at the location cast votes. The Cummington Street location was BU students’ main polling spot.

The number of voters exceeded predictions for the location by about 150 votes, according to poll clerk Louis Marciano, who said few more than 30 students voted during primary elections in mid-September.

Steady lines kept poll workers busy at Myles Standish Hall, as 753 of an estimated 2,635 registered voters showed up. More than 2,000 people cast votes at the Jackson Mann School in Allston, the main location for West Campus and Allston student residents. But poll workers at both locations said the crowds were mainly non-students and, besides a few campaign signs, there was little activity outside the two polling places.

Longtime poll worker Patricia Landry said turnout increased significantly among both students and non-students at Myles, which she attributed to interest in Question 2 – the contentious issue of bilingual education – and concern for the future direction of the state and country. Jack King, a poll observer for the Mitt Romney-Kerry Healey campaign, estimated between 30 and 50 students voted at the polling place.

Of the crowd at Myles during the early evening hours, very few were students.

One of them, College of Fine Arts freshman Juliet Totten, wore a smile on her face after casting her first votes yesterday at Myles. She attributed low student turnout to a feeling that their votes will not make a difference. She also speculated students might have been attempting to make a statement by not participating.

‘Students in general are either against the whole regime or complain about the system and then make no effort to change it,’ she said. ‘People occasionally don’t think they matter or think that not voting is making a statement, which I disagree with.’

College of Arts and Sciences freshman Omar Zeid, also a first-time voter, said many students in the ‘bubble of being in college’ do not feel like they are really full-time Boston residents. Zeid, however, said voting made him feel like a more responsible member of society.

CAS junior and College Democrat Jennifer Valentin said some students just do not care about voting because they only live in Boston for four years, though she said they really should care.

‘You kind of have to care because if you don’t, who will?’ she said. ‘We make up the base of the population, so we have to.’

Maria Frenn, a CAS senior, waited for vote count results as an election observer for the Shannon O’Brien-Chris Gabrieli campaign at 111 Cummington St. last night. She attributed the meager turnout to the number of students who vote absentee in their home states. Frenn was especially interested in this election because of Question 2 and O’Brien’s stance on bilingual education, she said.

Totten said she has expected to be an active voter for her whole life.

‘I’ve been raised to think it’s really a duty,’ she said. ‘I’m glad I get to vote now.’