{"id":1978,"date":"2019-04-18T12:02:41","date_gmt":"2019-04-18T17:02:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/truthinaddison.com\/?page_id=1978"},"modified":"2019-04-18T12:07:08","modified_gmt":"2019-04-18T17:07:08","slug":"signs-of-the-times-political-advertising-rules","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/truthinaddison.com\/?page_id=1978","title":{"rendered":"Signs of the Times: Political Advertising Rules"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Signs of the Times:
Political Advertising Rules
Aren\u2019t That Difficult To Follow
By Susan M. Halpern
Former Addison Councilmember (1992-1999)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s springtime in Addison.  The flowers are blooming, the grass is green and the weather is warming.  The signs are all there!  It must be election time.  And that means political signs and political advertising aimed at allowing Addison voters to get to know the candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This\nyear, we have four incumbents running: Mayor Joe Chow and Councilmembers Lori\nWard, Tom Braun and Ivan Hughes.  All\nfour abided by the informal understanding that has existed for years regarding\nnot putting signs up until 30 days before election day.  So, on April 4th<\/sup>, their signs went\nup, but not a minute before.  Other\ncandidates ignored this informal agreement, placing signs out well in advance\nof the 30-day window.  That was\ndisappointing at best.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Political\nsigns are subject to some very specific regulations set forth in the Texas\nElection Code.  One section recognizes\nthat these political signs can be misleading to voters.  So, for example, the Election Code prohibits\nuse of the word \u201creelect\u201d by persons who don\u2019t hold the office they are\nseeking, because use of the term suggests that such persons do hold office,\nwhen that isn\u2019t true.  The Election Code\nalso requires that if the office sought is listed on the sign, for example\nreferencing \u201cAddison Council\u201d or the like, then a person who doesn\u2019t hold that\noffice must include the word \u201cfor\u201d before the office.  That makes it clear that the person is not\nthen an incumbent office holder, which ensures that voters are not misled.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two\ncandidates have signs that appear to run afoul of these important rules.  One was once a councilmember but isn\u2019t now, yet\nhe has chosen to use the word \u201creelect\u201d on his signs.  It is baffling, given that the regulations\nprohibiting that practice are so clear. \nThe same candidate also has \u201cAddison Council\u201d on his sign.  Initially, the word \u201cfor\u201d wasn\u2019t there which\nagain ran afoul of the regulations. \nAfter he was notified by at least one person we know of, the word \u201cfor\u201d was\nadded to his signs.  The problem is that\nthe word was added using a black marker on a dark blue background, so it is\nvery hard to see and most people passing by probably won\u2019t notice it.  They\u2019ll see \u201creelect\u201d and they\u2019ll see the\noffice, and some may be misled into thinking that this non-officeholder somehow\nholds office.  The other candidate\u2019s\nsigns likewise don\u2019t have the word \u201cfor\u201d before the office that is listed, and\nthey are missing required disclaimers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\ncandidates received information about the requirements of the Texas Election\nCode in their candidate packages.  They\nalso received a memo from Addison\u2019s City Secretary via email on April 9, 2019,\nwhich very specifically addressed the use of the word \u201creelect\u201d by\nnon-incumbents.  Yet, a quick drive\naround town two days later confirmed the continued use of this misleading\nterminology. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rules exist for a reason, and they should be followed.  Failure to do so exhibits attitudes at variance with The Addison Way.  That really is disappointing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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