Good afternoon,
The election is approaching and the waning days of lawn sign wars are upon us.
On the plus side, many of the Scott Walker signs have disappeared.
Walker was one of a half-dozen candidates seeking the Republican nomination for governor and is known for using plywood signs of various sizes, even going as far as to nail his work to roadside trees. With the supply of used plywood rapidly disappearing, he later turned to vinyl.
Walker keeps his options open and doesn’t always mention the office he is seeking on the sign itself. In other words, his signs could return in a couple of years.
As you might remember, Walker did manage to get the GOP nomination for the state’s lone congressional seat. There was some speculation that he benefitted from having the same name as the former Republican governor of Wisconsin.
Reports of stolen and defaced signs abound as elections approach. Given the contentious nature of the presidential race, things have been amped up with both Biden and Trump supporters reporting their signs have been defaced or stolen.
There are also the usual complaints about signs placed along with rights of way. Delaware authorities are fairly forgiving of such things but were not happy years ago when an out of state campaign operation hammered signs in the expansion joints of concrete medians.
Technology is also coming into play, sometimes with unintended results.
In Easton, MD, the bomb squad was called and a park was evacuated after suspicious objects were attached to Trump-Pence signs. It turned out the devices were alarms that would sound if an individual came too close.
The signs were removed after it was determined that their placement on public property was not lawful. The Maryland Fire Marshal’s office did caution, anyone, seeing a suspicious object should stay away and call the police.
Also, keep in mind that video cameras are on every mobile phone.
As you might remember, the husband of Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long was seen on video taking down lawn signs.
Hall-Long, who acknowledged and expressed regret for the incident, has emerged as one of the state’s more popular politicians after narrowly winning the Senate seat.
Two years later, the Democrat was elected as lieutenant governor and is now seeking a second term. If re-elected, Hall-Long will be at the top of the list of potential candidates for governor, with the sign incident in the rear-view mirror.
Enjoy your weekend. It looks like we are in for a long period of rain beginning Sunday that may keep sign incidents down. – Doug Rainey, chief content officer.
