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JACKSON, Miss. — Mississippi’s top elections official says absentee voting continues at a brisk pace.

Secretary of State Michael Watson said Monday that nearly 170,000 absentee ballots had been requested and about 142,600 of those had been completed and returned by Sunday. That compares to 103,000 total absentee ballots that were cast in the state during the 2016 election, the last time a presidential race was on the ballot.

This year’s absentee numbers surpassed the 2016 numbers a week ago.

Mississippi has some of the most restrictive absentee voting laws in the United States.