Milford election officials were able to begin counting more than 10,000 absentee ballots they've received, thanks to a new law signed by Gov. Ned Lamont.

Municipalities can pre-process absentee ballots, which means cutting open the outer envelopes and checking for signatures, starting at 5 p.m. on Friday.

Milford is one of nearly 40 towns taking advantage of the new rule. Election officials say they hope getting a head start will help get every vote counted by Wednesday.

They say the mail vote in Milford seems to be going smoothly.

"Less than 1% of the ballots submitted so far have been rejected," says Milford Voter Registrar Kerri Rowland.

Milford's polling places and ballot drop boxes will be open until 8 p.m. Tuesday.