Campaign signs are no longer allowed at the Lorain County Board of Elections

LORAIN — Campaign signs cannot be placed outside the Lorain County Board of Elections. Paul Adams, board of elections director, said the change was made after previous complaints from voters that the sheer number of signs made it difficult to safely navigate the board's entrance. "I think after the last primary there were, I believe, close to 200 to 250 signs just within the small area close to the entrance of our parking lot," he said. "It was to the point where you couldn't even see everybody's sign because there were just so many of them." Before the change was voted on in May, candidates and campaign officials were able to put signs out 100-feet away from the board's entrance, the same as with any regular polling place. But because the signs were for races throughout the county, and kept getting bigger or taller to be seen in the mass of postings, it became too much for drivers to safely navigate around, he said. He said the signs at the Board of Elections weren't really put out until around five or six years ago, when the push for early voting gained momentum. As the years went on the number of candidates and signs has continued to multiple, he said. Campaigners are still able to wear t-shirts and hand out literature while obeying that 100-foot minimum at the board, he said, with several taking advantage of it Tuesday. Tuesday was the start of early voting, with 112 residents taking advantage of the option. "(A) Slow, but smooth start for this election," Adams said. He said all campaigns were advised of the policy change either when they submitted post-primary reports in June or when pulling petitions for the November ballot. "There were a few individuals who were out putting up signs this morning, we had somebody go out, talk to them, and they removed them," he said. "There was no problem." The board's change does not impact the rules for ward-based polling places — with Adams noting the number of signs there are rarely a problem because there are less races in each single ward than compared with the almost 30 issues and score of candidates running throughout the county. Early voting runs through 2 p.m. Nov. 4. A full list of times is available on the Board of Elections website. Election Day is Nov. 5 with polls open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.