It’s getting close to that time of year where yard signs touting one incompetent political candidate or another will soon start appearing in the neighborhood. These always struck me as useless at best, annoying and a disfigurement of a lawn at worst. But really, what is the point of such signs?
Is it an attempt to convince others seeing the sign to vote for that candidate? I can’t imagine even the most indecisive person has ever been motivated to vote for a particular candidate based on walking past a yard and seeing such a sign.
Are they an attempt at virtue signaling by the house owners? I don’t have any interest in broadcasting my voting preferences to other people but I guess maybe some people do?
I guess the one situation where I mayyybeee see such a sign being a small benefit is when the candidate is seeking election to a relatively insignificant local elected position and the average person isn’t familiar with ANY of the candidates for that position. In such a case maybe the sign jars a “hey that name sounds familiar” thought in the voter as they stand at the polls trying to decide who vote for county clerk of court or something. But for candidates like President, I don’t think any Harris voter is going to suddenly change their vote after seeing some stupid “Make America Great Again” sign, or vice versa for Trump voters seeing Harris signs. So, what is the motivation for having them then?
Name recognition for one. Unlikely to matter much for President, but important for lower offices. They do seem to influence voting a small amount.
A 2015 study led by Donald Green, a political science professor at Columbia University, found that political signs can in fact make a difference — “somewhere between 1 and 2 percentage points on average,” Green says. “Hardly earth shattering, but not nothing, either.”
This is probably the answer. Politics is like a team sport now - you gotta show your colors! Next will be seeing people in facepaint at the grocery store.
But, I agree that it makes no sense other than to signal what team you are on, so everyone in the neighborhood who’s on the same team can feel a little bit of support, and maybe build a little enthusiasm to vote (doubtful). It can also be a way to identify the houses and neighbors requiring mock and ridicule. Or, sadly, it identifies homes that may be targeted for violence these days.
Indeed, that’s probably why the only yard signs I see around here are for our city’s mayor and other local offices. Nobody would be stupid enough to put out a presidential yard sign in our extremely blue neighborhood.
We humans are communal creatures. Any signal that others are voting one way can make you more comfortable voting that way yourself. Yard signs are the old school way to do this.
It can also serve to tell canvassers that you’ve already decided, and thus no need to try knocking on your door. You’ve probably already been there and got them.
If it were just “virtue signalling,” campaigns wouldn’t spend so much making them and giving them out for free.
Definitely this. I always drive by the homes of the town’s Democratic and Republican party chairs to see what signs they have up for local elections. Without this, I would be basing my vote on the only other information I have available, which is usually just the candidate’s address.
Or an act of intimidation; a Trump sign is a threat of violence against anyone who doesn’t support them, or has the wrong skin color, or is the wrong gender, or…
It’s like putting up a big Nazi flag on your lawn. In 1930s Germany.
I agree that can be a potential benefit to others, but it doesn’t explain the motivations of the homeowners putting up the signs. Presumably, they don’t have any desire to be mocked and ridiculed.
As someone who is deeply entrenched in the yard sign game (I have been on several committees to pass levies, and run for council myself), the most important yard signs are for local issues. When you see “VOTE YES ON ISSUE 12!” around you’re going to be inclined to vote yes on issue 12.
Same goes for local candidates. You’re probably not going to research Candidate X but if you see a lot of signs for them, you’re going to remember to tick their name at the polls. Most helpful when the seat is not party affiliated.
Adding well-known candidate signs to the mix can help if you see that people who support your candidate you’re already supporting also supports Issue X or Local Candidate Y.
Sometimes signs can also give a succinct reason for the issue. When we did a local issue to raise money for a fire truck, the signs had fire trucks on them.
Heck, one time we had a local election where the council candidates ran un-opposed, so they didn’t put out signs, and a resident told me she was mad that no one put up signs because she didn’t know there was an election!
And if nothing else, there may be people in your neighborhood who know who you are and where you live, and depending on whether or not they respect you, they could be swayed by the signs in your yard. Some people just don’t have an opinion but are willing to follow suit.
I suppose it could be in any particular case depending on the thought process of the homeowner, but in general, and absent additional context, this is absolutely absurd.
I saw a sign the other day for someone running for Clerk of Court. Their name was J. Kerkhoff. I’d vote for them in a heartbeat, out of sympathy if nothing else!
Lately I’ve seen a few Harris/Walz signs popping up where Trump/Pence once proliferated. Cheers me no end.
It gives a sense of consensus. And it can subtly persuade people. If someone sees an overwhelming number of signs for a candidate in their neighborhood, they may think, “Well, that guy must have something good about him.” Gentle bandwagoning effect.
Advertising is not about putting up a sign, it’s putting up many signs. Lots and lots of signs. There’s a grand history in advertising about just flooding the world with your stuff. It is supposedly quite effective.
They’re usually not free, they’re also signalling you donated some sum. Probably a trivial amount, but some. A few people have them on their residential lawns, but for the most part I see a mess of signs on undeveloped land along thoroughfares.
Only a few in my neighborhood, a lot of sketchy solar company signs on people’s lawns though.
I just hung a “Thank You Joe” banner on the front of our vacation house, since I know his motorcade passes by when he heads to church from his Rehoboth Beach house so there’s a chance he’ll actually see it.
We have a Harris-Walz sign on our lawn. I think they appeal to the tribal, communal nature of humans. “Look! We’re voting for Harris. You can be part of our team!” The more signs you see, the bigger the effect.
I think it’s similar to the impact of rallies and campaign stops. No matter how large the crowd, it’s minuscule compared to the voting population. But it’s shown on TV and it signals that the candidate views your community as important.
Worded differently, I think the proper answer to my mom’s question could be “Yes, I just might jump off a bridge if everyone else did.”
Over here the use of window stickers and front garden signs is declining: they used to serve as a way to deter canvassers for The Other Lot, where it happens nowadays it can serve as a sort of territory-marking - “We got our supporters energised first and in quantity”. The LibDems have been very good at that in key by-elections and their target seats at this year’s general election.
Don’t underestimate the Swinging Member factor. The latest thing by some Trump supporters is to buy a small parcel of land next to a major highway and absolutely plaster it with signs and paraphernalia. There was one such display when I lived in Florida, and there’s two here in OH that I’ve seen.
One point is so my neighbor who will surely get re-elected to the town council does sic a bunch of inspectors on my property to look for violations. I like seeing the Trump signs this year too. Anybody not ashamed to be promoting Trump around here this year needs some watching. Finally, print shops are people to, they need this business if they’re smart enough to required payment on delivery.
