Beth Hoffman.

Poll worker training for this election happened a few days ago, and like one big democratic family, the group of mostly retirees and grandparents (many of whom have been poll workers for a decade or more) reviewed again how to properly serve the public in the voting process.

And while there are differences of opinions — some were concerned about “illegals” voting, others wanted to know why voters have to choose a gender — we are all united in our belief in the American dream, one where the populace peacefully and respectfully chooses a new leader.

One of the things covered in training were the rules for voting — which are complicated and vary by state.

Thirty-six states, including Iowa, require presenting identification (not necessarily with a photo), while other states like California check signatures or other personal information when people arrive at the polls. In California, I had to vote provisionally (provisional votes go into a special pile to be considered separately) when I neglected to fill out my absentee ballot. Here in Iowa, I could have surrendered my absentee ballot by bringing it to my polling place and then been allowed to vote as everyone else does.

In Iowa, an equal number of Democrats and Republicans must work at each polling station (Independents and other parties are welcome too). New York law requires the same.

It’s a lot to learn, but luckily the computerized system is set up so there is very little opportunity for mistakes. Prompts on the computer screen remind workers what to ask and in what order (“Please state your name, address and birthdate …”) and guide us through step-by-step when handling irregularities. If a person has changed their name, for example, or moved to a new address but did not update their license, there is a process to update their information or to register them to vote the day of the election (all legal in Iowa).

Of course, nothing we humans do is foolproof and there will likely be more than one mistake made in the election this year in the United States. But mistakes are not the same as conspiracies, and it saddens and concerns me that this election is marred by so much suspicion, suspicion of everything from the poll workers and the computer systems to the voters and the election officials — suspicion of each other.

It’s enough to make countries who hate our democracy rub their hands with glee to think that neighbor is pitted against neighbor, all while our environment, the economy, and ultimately our democracy, suffers. Let’s instead turn off the TV, the Instagram feeds, and the Facebook posts aimed at tearing us apart this election season, and work to make democracy a reality, together.

Beth Hoffman of Whippoorwill Creek Farm, Lovilia, Iowa, is the author of “Bet the Farm: The Dollars and Sense of Growing Food in America.” This column was originally published by Iowa Capital Dispatch and is reprinted here under a Creative Commons License.