NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – It's just days before the election, and the number of people voting early in New Mexico is trending lower than in 2020. Although we are ahead of 2016 early and absentee voting turnouts, some analysts said those voting numbers are still high compared to years before the pandemic. "A lot of voters essentially want to get things over with. 'I wanna cast my ballot early and not have to think about the election,' so I think that's part of the bigger picture scenario we've seen," said Gabriel Sanchez. That's one reasons we can see a higher number of New Mexicans submitting their absentee ballots and voting early in person. When asked about their reasons, many voters explained they wanted to avoid long lines on election day. Some had other motives, like being able to vote for a female president or showing their support for the electoral system. Advocates ask New Mexico lawmakers for help securing more electric school buses As of Friday, the total count of early voters and absentee ballots is at 563,000. However, this is lower than 2020 by 150,000. Sanchez explained the number could still turn out to be high, but the state might not break any records for voter turnout this time around, and a factor of that can be the number of highly contested races. "We wanna think about whether or not there's close elections the more close elections are projected, the tighter it is, the more competitive turnout is generally higher. Here, across the State of New Mexico, we really don't have a lot of really projected to be close elections," said Sanchez. The last day to vote early is Saturday. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day. To follow KRQE's election coverage, click here.