Voters turned out, but not turned off

New York weather has been relatively cool the past few days. So, too, has been the reception here to the Republican National Convention. That's not particularly surprising, since Democrats outnumber Republicans by almost 5 to 1 in New York City.

''What is to watch?'' asks a Hispanic man standing under an awning on the Lower East Side to avoid a sudden downpour yesterday.

''It's a bummer of a convention,'' said another man who described himself as an ''avid'' political observer. ''There is nothing going on.''

Therese Laskey, a Democrat from Manhattan, said she tuned in to some of the convention, partly because there was nothing else interesting on television. She found the convention ''boring'' and disagrees strongly with the platform the Republicans have adopted.

But Ms. Laskey, who works in cable television marketing, was planning to watch President Reagan give his acceptance speech last night. She said, ''I want to see what he says,'' although she plans to vote for Walter Mondale.

There are voters who applaud the convention.

''I think they're doing a very good job,'' said a Republican woman from the Upper East Side. She particularly enjoyed UN ambassador Jeane Kirkpatrick (whom she says belongs in the Republican Party) and Sen. Barry Goldwater. ''He's so honest and so principled,'' she declared.

Although she has some disagreements with Reagan's policies, the Republican woman, who did not provide her name, said she intends to vote for him.

Summer fun has kept even some dedicated Republicans from tuning into convention coverage.

''I've been missing it,'' said Nancy Ko of North Bergen, N.J., who works in a Manhattan financial firm. ''I feel so unloyal. I watched the Democratic convention because I was curious.''

She'd been showing an out-of-town visitor around, and hadn't even caught up with the convention news in the newspapers.