There’s a moment in every election season when the mail starts to feel less like communication and more like noise. Political ads, glossy flyers, push polls, social media posts with alarming headlines — it all blurs together, and for many voters, it creates a low hum of anxiety. But in Bergen County, New Jersey, something a little different is landing in mailboxes this October. It’s a brochure called “Ignore the Rumors,” and despite its slightly cheeky name, it has a serious mission: to help voters sort fact from fiction before they cast their ballots. County officials recently confirmed to Pascack Press that the guide is being mailed to every registered voter before early in-person voting begins on Saturday, October 24. It is the third year in a row that the County Clerk’s Office, the Superintendent of Elections Office, and the Board of Elections have joined forces to publish this updated, plain-language guide to election misinformation. And it couldn’t come at a better time. At a recent forum hosted by the League of Women Voters Interleague Organization, County Clerk Election Division Supervisor Sabrina Taranto explained that the guide would be delivered before Election Day and also posted online. For voters in the Pascack Valley, early voting runs through Sunday, November 1, at ten locations across the county, including the River Vale Community Center and the Tice Senior Center in Woodcliff Lake. The goal is simple: give people the truth so they don’t have to rely on whispers, forwarded messages, or well-crafted lies. And truth, the brochure argues, is not just a nice thing to have — it’s the foundation of democratic participation.
The brochure doesn’t shy away from the big, scary rumors. One of the most damaging claims it tackles is the idea that elections are rigged. It’s an accusation that gets thrown around so casually these days that it can feel almost normal to hear it. But the guide gently but firmly pushes back, explaining that New Jersey uses “multiple layers of security and checks and balances” to protect every single ballot. In Bergen County, that means voting equipment that is certified at both the state and federal level, never connected to the internet — you read that right, no Wi-Fi, no Ethernet, no wireless anything — and it always produces a paper trail that a human being can verify. Think about that for a second: the machines are not online, so there’s no remote-controlled hacking, no dark web back door. It’s a little like the safety measures at a bank, where multiple people have to verify a transaction before anything is approved. The brochure also addresses the fear that someone could easily vote more than once. In reality, the voter check-in system is designed to prevent duplicate votes before they ever happen. When you show up to vote, poll workers can see whether you’ve already returned a mail-in ballot or voted early. And if there’s any question about your eligibility, you don’t get turned away — you get a provisional ballot. But here’s the human part: that ballot doesn’t get counted until election officials confirm, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you haven’t already voted somewhere else. The system isn’t perfect, but it’s honest. It’s designed not to catch people doing something wrong, but to make sure no one’s legitimate vote is lost or duplicated.
One of the most confusing moments for voters is Election Night. We stay up late, watching maps and ticking percentages, expecting a winner before we go to bed. When states are slow to finish counting, or when the returns seem to stall, anxiety spikes. People immediately wonder: Is something wrong? Is the election being stolen? The Bergen County guide tackles that head-on, reminding readers that “Election Day is the deadline for voting, not for counting or declaring a winner.” It’s a line that deserves to be printed on a coffee mug. News outlets “call races” not because all the votes are in, but because they use complicated calculations based on exit polls, turnout numbers, and unofficial reports to predict what the final result will be. It’s a performance, not a legal outcome. The actual tally happens at a human pace — because it should. Officials are checking signatures, verifying ballots, reconciling totals. That takes time, and taking time is a sign of care, not corruption. The brochure’s message is almost parental: be patient, wait for the real answer, and don’t let a television pundit decide how you feel about democracy. Especially in a close election, a delay in the final result is not evidence of a problem. It’s evidence that every vote is being treated with respect. The guide encourages voters to trust the process, not the narrative. It’s a reminder that the media’s job is to entertain and inform, but counting the votes is a sacred, methodical task that cannot — and should not — be rushed for drama.
A significant portion of the brochure is dedicated to voting by mail, probably because that’s where so much of this year’s confusion lives. One of the most persistent myths is that requesting a mail-in ballot locks you in forever — that once you sign up, you’ll always have to vote that way, like it’s a subscription service you can’t cancel. The guide clears that up with a big, reassuring, all-caps declaration: “You can choose mail ballots for one election or all future elections. You can switch back to in-person voting by submitting a removal form.” That’s it. No complicated legal steps, no permanent commitment. You’re allowed to change your mind. The brochure also offers a practical warning for voters who request a mail-in ballot but then decide they want the in-person experience: if you show up to the polls, you’ll be handed a provisional ballot, and it will be counted only after officials confirm that no mail-in ballot was returned in your name. This isn’t a punishment — it’s an integrity check. It’s the system making sure one person equals one vote. The brochure also addresses privacy concerns, because a lot of people get uneasy when they hear that voter records are public. The guide calmly explains that basic facts — your name, address, party affiliation, and whether you’ve voted — are public information. But the ballot itself, the actual choices you make, is completely secret. Nobody knows who or what you voted for, not the neighbors, not the government, not the poll workers. So you can breathe a little. Voting by mail doesn’t put you under a microscope; it just gives you another way to participate in the democracy that belongs to you.
Of course, no election guide in the current climate would be complete without addressing the strangest and most alarming rumors of all. One of them is that National Guard troops or ICE agents might be deployed to polling locations, watching voters, intimidating them, or somehow intervening in the process. The Bergen County brochure handles this rumor with a directness that leaves no room for debate: “That is illegal under the United States Constitution.” It’s a short sentence, but it carries a lot of weight. The places where we vote are not battlefields; they are community centers, libraries, senior centers. In the Pascack Valley, that means the River Vale Community Center and the Tice Senior Center in Woodcliff Lake — places where people hold children’s birthday parties and senior citizen lunches. To imagine armed federal agents there is not just inaccurate, it’s a betrayal of what those spaces are for. The guide is essentially saying: trust your neighbors, trust the people who run the polls, and know that federal law protects your right to cast a ballot in peace. The brochure also tries to make early voting feel less intimidating for first-timers. No appointment is needed, no application is required. You just show up during the early-voting window — October 24 through November 1 — and cast your ballot. Voters can also visit the Bergen County Clerk’s Office to apply for and pick up a vote-by-mail ballot in person, which is perfect for people who missed the request deadline or who simply want the reassurance of talking to a real human being. It’s all designed to knock down the barriers that keep people away from the ballot box, whether those barriers are logistical, psychological, or based on bad information.
What makes “Ignore the Rumors” so powerful is not just that it debunks falsehoods, but that it treats voters with respect. It doesn’t mock people for being confused, and it doesn’t lecture them for being anxious. Instead, it says: we understand why you’re worried, and here’s what’s real. That kind of honesty is increasingly rare. In a world where disinformation is designed to undermine trust and discourage participation, the brochure is a quiet act of resistance. It reminds us that elections are not mysterious or untouchable. They are run by human beings — your neighbors, people who live in your town, who send their kids to the same schools, who shop at the same grocery stores. They work hard to make sure the process is fair, and they deserve our cautious trust. The guide encourages every voter to consult their sample ballot, to visit the County Clerk’s Office website, to ask questions, and to show up. Election Day this year is Tuesday, November 3, but you don’t have to wait until then. Early voting is open and accessible, and the whole county is prepared to help you make your voice heard. The brochure may be called “Ignore the Rumors,” but its real message is something even more important: believe in your own power. Don’t let a forwarded message or a scary headline convince you that your vote doesn’t matter. It does. It always has. And in Bergen County, officials are doing everything they can to make sure you know it. After all, democracy doesn’t work if people are too scared to participate. So open your mail. Read the guide. Talk to your neighbors. And when election time comes, walk into that community center or senior center with your head held high. The rumors are many, but the truth — and your voice — is stronger.