Absolute proof that political yard signs don't necessarily work...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKdyEPGiM7o

That's a lot of trash...

I'm surprised he got away with posting those.

That is insane how many signs are out there...I cant figure out something...what exactly do signs actually do for people...am i going to like say WOW this guy has a big sign i guess i gotta vote for him? I dont get it

I remember this from dealing with them. They didn't believe in them.

I worked on the campaign during the primaries. We gave out a few yard signs to people who lived in high visibility areas. But otherwise you had to donate if you wanted one.

Obviously trash like that on the side of the road isn't going to impact anything, well probably negatively if anything because it's an eyesore. But in people's yards it has a way of giving others in the neighborhood a feel for how people will vote. There is a herd mentality to elections in the end. A decent percentage of late deciders like to say they are voting for the winner and if they feel they are in a Democratic neighborhood or a Republican neighborhood you might influence a couple of the more weak-minded voters out there.

in my very red-neck, very white, very zenophobic part of my state, Obama's race added a new dimension to the yard-sign psychology - it made it okay to vote for a black man.

To see so many people proudly displaying Obama signs in their yard - people highly respected in every community, created a wave of support that wouldn't have been there without them. Obama won my county, barely, surprising me for days, and I entirely credit it to our local party purchasing yard signs, painting barn signs and making the most of them.

Tangentially, as an active grassroots party member, I'd also add that when deployed correctly, yard signs generate political participation and volunteers - who, now that they have a stake in seeing the candidate whose sign graces their yard actually win, can often be persuaded to donate money or volunteer.

No, yard signs don't vote, but to think they are a worthless tool is to see only one dimension of an election.

...let me say that yard signs are a pain in the ass to distribute on a grassroots level. They are unwieldy, take up a lot of room and are generally not worth the effort.

I did hand out Obama yard signs near the election and they were readily available as the election neared at local Obama headquarters. And of course, if you really wanted one, you could get one online for less than $10.

The only good yard signs are ones that are on corner lots or main streets that have busy traffic... and based on last year's election, those would either get ripped off or were defaced...

Bumperstickers are the way to go, imho. Cheap and they are like mini-billboards that travel around neighborhoods. Yard signs? Buy your own...

If you got a free sign, you got it from your local Democratic party. I remember this was a topic of mild argument during the primaries; Hillary's campaign gave out free bumper stickers and yard signs, while Obama's campaign made people pay for them.

In both the Primary and the General Election in PA.

The party stepped in and got some donors to donate about 5,000 in the Lehgih Valley area during the GE.

I personally ordered about 1000 buttons for the campaign. Wasn't too bad, if you buy in bulk they end up costing like a quarter.

I can still remember screaming matches in the office by people coming in from the street demanding Yard signs when we didn't have them.

We would ask for a donation, but if someone was an active volunteer we would give them the "chum" for free.

nt

I have never seen that many yard signs on the side of a road in ANY campaign ever.

:7

Rhetorical question.

he helped get the Hillary campaign in to so much debt.

He needs to pay to clear them up and hopefully they can be recycled. There were so many I could hardly read any of them.

McAuliffe's were huge! None of my Democratic relatives voted for McAuliffe (they voted for Moran -- no freeper jokes please!).

Even less surprised he lost.