Elections....Ho-Roger-Um.

Roger has signs behind Walmart and a reader wonders if that's allowed.

Roger already had signs on lawns on his street. If it isn't allowed,he would already have been informed by the Bylaw Enforcement Department.It probably is allowed on private property.

There are a couple of good reasons not to put signs out before time.

The first one is they irritate people after they've been around for a while.

The second, they are the toughest job of any election campaign.

I put signs out after Halloween.

Then it's just the wind and the rain that plays havoc. I don't have to get paranoid about all the people who hate me.

If a voter allows a sign on their lawn, the candidate has an obligation to ensure it stays in good condition.

If staples spring , they need to be re-fastened.

If a sign gets broken it needs to be replaced and garbage removed.

If stakes get broken they have to be pulled out of the ground and replaced. That's a pain.

Every sign has to be checked daily or even twice a day. So you need to know where every one is.

Sign needs to be distinctive.

They are the most expensive part of any campaign and most heartbreaking. if funding is tight.

But you have to do it.

Once I didn't. I had a nice letter from a resident congratulating me for caring about visual littering and not using signs.

I had many more comments from people who chided me for not letting them know I was a candidate.

I didn't win .

On the basis of an election turn out, most of the money spent on a campaign is wasted. Leaflets often go straight into the re-cycling box . They don't even get into the house, let alone read.

Mail boxes don't exist at many addresses. So leaflets have to be inserted into railings or inside the storm door.The wind catches them and blows them away.

Mailing costs more than leaflets.

People with no interest in the election complain about the mess

But those who do, expect a candidate to mount a campaign.

No-one can take it for granted that registering one's name is all that's needed to win votes.

Roger may be anxious to get started. Signs may make his name familiar. If there's nothing to go with the name, there's nothing to talk about except " Oh My God. those dratted signs again"

People are not yet in election mode. Summer vacations are still ahead and then there's the excitement of getting the kids back to school.

For everything, there is a season.

P.S. My daughter Heather, bless her heart, is mostly responsible for my signs. She reminded me after I posted yesterday , the election is ahead of Halloween now. Putting up the signs after
would be a bit late.

I forgot to mention the chore of collecting the signs after the election. Heather is out there
gathering them up on the night of the election.

And not a minute too soon.

Corrugated plastic can be re-used. Cardboard is just so much more garbage to be disposed.