FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s secretary of state predicts about 700,000 Kentuckians will have requested absentee ballots before Friday’s deadline. Michael Adams says that rate is “right in the sweet spot” for election officials juggling mail-in and in-person voting for next month’s general election. Adams says as of Thursday, about 625,000 Kentuckians had requested absentee ballots. That’s about 17.5% of registered voters in the Bluegrass State. The state is accommodating widespread mail-in voting because of the coronavirus pandemic. Kentuckians will be making their choices for president and a hotly contested U.S. Senate race as well as congressional and state legislative races.