CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico — Nearly 200 families gathered along a stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border Saturday for heartfelt but brief reunions with loved ones they haven’t seen in years as they live in opposite countries.

Tears flowed and people hugged as Mexican families were allowed to reunite for a few minutes at the border with relatives who had migrated to the US. Adults and children crossed the Rio Grande to meet their loved ones.

This year, the annual event organized by an immigrant rights advocacy group came three days before the US presidential election, whose months-long campaigning has focused heavily on immigration and border security. It also took place under increased security, according to the Network for the Defense of Migrants’ Rights.

“We didn’t have barbed wire, we didn’t have that many soldiers deployed in our community,” said Fernando García, the organization’s director, noting the border security changes the border has seen since the meeting began last decade. “The barbed wire had to be opened so families could have this event.”

García said he expects migration to the U.S. to continue regardless of who wins Tuesday’s election. Family reunions, he said, will also continue.

“Deportation policy, border policy, immigration policy separates families in a tremendous way and affects these families deeply,” he told reporters before the event.