Campaign Signs Still Up Around The Twin Cities

After Friday, if they're still posted, it'll actually be a crime in some cities to have campaign signs up. It's been more than a week since the election and in Blaine, Reporters found signs for congressional candidate Patty Wetterling, Anoka County Commission hopeful Dick Swanson and Attorney General Candidate Jeff Johnson. State election law says candidates have 10 days after the election to take down the signs. In Blaine, if they are not taken down, it's a petty misdemeanor, punishable by a $300 per sign fine. "We actually give them a little leeway because the tenth day is this Friday and we will wait until the following Monday. If they're not down by then, we'll actually do a sweep and remove them," said Jane Cross, Blaine City Clerk.The City Clerk said she can not remember the last time someone was prosecuted. City workers just usually throw the left over signs away. Before the election, her office got about 15 complaints about illegal signs, such as those posted on public property. "It really ties up a lot of our time and it's unfortunate because we have a lot of things to do besides chase down people and move their signs," she said. An Amy Klobuchar for U.S. Senate sign still sat in Krista Twesme's yard in Minneapolis Wednesday. Although her husband removed it late Wednesday to add to their decade-old collection. "We're the kind of people who had our Wellstone sign out in the front yard until about March or April," Twesme said. Reporters tried to reach several campaigns. The Jeff Johnson campaign said the volunteers who put up his 5,000 signs are supposed to be the ones who take them down. If you see any political signs out there, you can report them to your city clerk.