We Love Durham NC

Placement

If the candidates themselves were placing their election signs, you could tell a lot about their personalities. Who places the sign 1 inch away from another sign, blocking a competitor? Who “agrees” to place the sign in a long straight line perpendicular to the road? Who is very creative and places the sign across the street, when there are 25 signs in the median? Who puts 10 signs in a row in case we didn’t see the first 2?

I suppose there must be laws about how big the signs should be, and what shape, or else we’d see more variety of the signs themselves. I would like to know the candidate that puts the sign upside down. Or sideways. Or pays the skateboarder guy flipping the advertising board at the corner of Garrett and 15-501 to carry the message. Ooo, ooo, or Mr. Liberty from the tax office on Martin Luther King–wouldn’t that be a message?!

They tell me that this primary is pretty important for us North Carolinians. It’s May 6th this year (this is the NC Board of Elections link for time and other info).

5 Comments to Placement

1. 

   Cool question! If there’s a subspecialty of political consulting that takes care of this, I want in.
Phil on April 9th, 2008
2. 

   There are laws relating to the size of the signs, also to their location, and when they can be placed (45 days before an election in which the candidate is actually running).

   We had an interesting discussion about some aspects of campaign signs last night, specifically about who puts their picture on their sign, and why. Which seems to be a pretty unique to Durham thing.
barry on April 9th, 2008
3. 

   The biggest sign belongs to a candidate who is running unopposed. What do you think that says about him? :)

   I wonder if Mr. Liberty brings in more customers than he scares away. Seriously, it’s like the Grim Reaper standing on the street corner next to the funeral home trying to drum up business.
Toastie on April 9th, 2008
4. 

   Phil, me too! I suppose that’s the Business of Politics.

   Barry, sorry I missed that discussion. I noticed also the color is important. Sometimes green signs mean the candidate is environmentally green.

   Toastie, after I implied that the signs were the same size, I noticed that there was a bigger one out there. Unopposed, huh? Why have a sign at all? Mr. Liberty… hmm. He waves and that seems friendly. At least he’s not that creepy cow outside Chikfila. You can’t see his/her eyes and he/she doesn’t talk…. Mbooo!
Valerie on April 10th, 2008
5. 

   My pet peeve is all the signs in the median that block your view of oncoming traffic when you’re in a left-turn lane with no traffic signal. If any candidates placed their signs there, you can be sure I wouldn’t vote for them, just on principle of their being so inconsiderate. So far, it’s just folks trying to sell the homes they can’t afford. I can’t tell you how tempted I’ve been to yank up those signs and return them to the addresses listed - with a lovely note, of course! :)
Aimee on April 10th, 2008

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