There has been much false information circulating on social media about absentee ballots. In an effort to get the correct information to the public, The Voice asked Rutherford County Elections Administrator Alan Farley for advice.

His best advice (it should really go without saying) is to trust our local officials before a meme on Facebook. 

For instructions on how to request an absentee ballot, visit the Election Commission's website.

The Absentee Voting Request for the Nov. 3 Election is now available and can be found here. The last day to accept a request is Oct. 27, 2020.

Farley's advice:

Be cautious and get your election information from reliable sources. There is a lot of misinformation being thrown around. All 50 states conduct elections differently. If you have questions on the process in Rutherford County, call and ask us. We would be glad to answer your questions.

Tennessee election law requires ballots to be returned to the Election Commission by U.S. mail or Fed Ex or UPS. Tennessee does not use drop boxes.

To be counted, ballots MUST be returned to the Election Commission by close of polls on Election Day. Postmarks don't matter!

My suggestion is to get your absentee request in as soon as possible. August and September are great months to get your request submitted. That allows our office time to process your request, mail you the ballot and for the voter to return ballot back to us timely. For me, if I forgot to submit a request or waited until mid- October to submit an absentee ballot request, I would appear in person during early voting to make sure my ballot was cast timely.

We will have plenty of locations and hours to early vote in October. Those location and times will be announced in September. Plus, Rutherford County has the opportunity to vote at any of our Election Day Convenient Vote Centers.