A motion to limit the location, size and number of election signs during municipal campaigns failed to gain traction with most Saanich council members this week.
A motion proposed by councillors Mena Westhaver and Colin Plant would have permitted only smaller — no more than 24-inch by 24-inch — signs on Saanich public property and allow election signs on public land only at traffic-signal-controlled intersections, with only two at each intersection per candidate. It also recommended doing away with roadside cheering stations.
“I just want to say we are not opposed to election signs,” said Westhaver. “We are looking to regulate election signs.”
Westhaver said the signs amount to visual pollution and are distracting.
But the majority of council wanted to keep the sign rules as they are.
Coun. Zac de Vries said he had a problem with sitting councillors changing the rules, especially when it gives them, as incumbents with name recognition, an advantage.
He also noted that it’s hard to apply the rules across a large area like Saanich, with a mix of public and private land.
De Vries argued signs are an inexpensive way for people to get their names out and public land is a great equalizer.
Coun. Karen Harper asked what problem the motion would actually be solving.
“Is it roadside clutter for four weeks? I would argue that small signs are in fact much more likely to be littered after the fact than the larger signs, which are much more difficult to deal with,” she said. “The problem that we should be addressing is how do we get the voter participation rate up, because it’s not high at the municipal level.”
Coun. Teale Phelps Bondaroff, who was in favour of the smaller‑sign motion, suggested smaller signs would be more accessible for new candidates and would encourage people to get involved.
“I think the idea of having more signs, smaller signs, which make them more affordable, spread out across the district, allows us to engage with more voters in a more varied part of the district,” he said.
Council did not debate the merits of limiting signs at intersections given the lack of support for the smaller signs, and council defeated the motion to advise against roadside cheering stations, with some councillors suggesting those were part of the fun of elections.
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