Polls open Tuesday at 7 a.m. for the primary elections as Mississippians cast ballots for candidates seeking party nominations for U.S. Senate and House of Representative seats.

Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann is hopeful registered voters will go to the polls, which will be open until 7 p.m. Tuesday.

“Thousands of Mississippi National Guardsmen and women are deploying now for the Middle East,” Hosemann said. “One of the ways we can honor their service and sacrifice is to cast a ballot in the upcoming election.”

Hosemann was disappointed by the number of absentee ballots requested for the party primaries. In a state with 1.8 million registered voters, only about 6,000 people requested absentee ballots that were due Saturday in the Circuit Clerk’s office.

Hosemann said he hopes the absentee numbers don’t reflect how many people will vote in person, but added: “I’m not expecting a large turnout, unfortunately.”

Republicans and Democrats each have a party primary for a U.S. Senate seat now held by Republican Roger Wicker. Six candidates are running in the Democratic primary, and Wicker faces one challenger for the Republican nomination.

Each party has a primary for central Mississippi’s 3rd District House seat, where Republican incumbent Gregg Harper is not seeking re-election after a decade in office. The Republican primary has six candidates, and the Democratic primary has two.

Republicans also have a primary in south Mississippi’s 4th District, with Republican incumbent Steven Palazzo facing one challenger.

Warren County voters casting ballots in the Democratic Primary will vote for either David Baria, Jensen Bohren, Jerone Garland, Victor Maurice Jr., Omeria Scott or Howard Sherman in the U.S. Senate, while incumbent 2^nd Congressional District U.S. House of Representative Bennie Thompson is running unopposed.

On the Republican Primary ballot, Wicker will face challenger Richard Warren Boyanton.

If runoffs are needed, they will be June 26.

Senate and Congressional Primary Elections are conducted by political parties in Mississippi, according to the Secretary of State’s office, which will have 26 observers in precincts across the state. The Secretary of State’s office has no enforcement authority to resolve problems that may arise at precincts, but can refer issues to the Elections Division that can be referred to authorities, including the Attorney General’s office or appropriate District Attorney’s office.

The Secretary of State’s office also reminds voters to show photo identification at the polls. A voter without an acceptable form of photo identification is entitled to cast an affidavit ballot, which will be counted if the voter provides an acceptable form of photo identification to the Circuit Clerk’s office within five business days after the election.