A number of political signs supporting Democratic and Republican candidates have been reported stolen over the past month across Whatcom County despite the action being a misdemeanor.
At least 200 signs featuring Democratic candidates such as presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, the Minnesota governor, as well as governor candidate Bob Ferguson have been taken, said Gwen Groden, the program coordinator for the Whatcom County Democrats. Now the group is having to reorder more signs to replace those that have been taken.
“We’ve got 1,400 signs out there this year,” she said. “It’s a record year for people wanting signs.”
That figure only represents the number of people who’ve gotten signs from the Whatcom County Democrats. It doesn’t represent those who bought political signs off the internet featuring motifs of Harris, cats (a nod to Vice Presidential candidate JD Vance’s comment about “childless cat ladies”) and Barbie-themed political calls to action.
Democrats aren’t the only ones being targeted by sign thieves. Republican candidates for state legislative races have also noticed their signs being taken or vandalized across Whatcom County, said Tami Bhachu, wife and campaign manager of Kamal Bhachu who is running for District 42 State House position 2.
Someone had cut Bhachu’s campaign sign into three pieces, she said, while signs for Raymond Pelletti, running for District 42 State House position 1, had been removed and signs supporting Dave Reichert for governor had been vandalized.
“We have never purchased so many to try and keep replacing them for folks who put them out and would drive by to see them gone,” Bhachu said. “We’ve been involved locally for several years. I’ve never seen it quite like this and so across the board. Entire corners worth of signs gone.”
Julia Kerl, 77, said she had her “Kamala Obviously” sign taken from her house sometime between Saturday night and Sunday morning. She only noticed when she was out for a walk with a neighbor.
“My sign was gone and so was every other [Harris] sign on our street,” she said.
During the same period, two flags for former President Donald Trump were not removed from Kerl’s neighborhood area, she said.
“This is a neighborhood where this seems so unusual,” she said, noting she lives in the Alabama Hill/Barkley area.
Megan Peters, the Bellingham Police Department public information officer, said there had been eight reports of political signs being taken since Oct. 1. Small clusters of reports have happened on the weekends.
On social media sites such as NextDoor, dozens of posts from people in neighborhoods from Puget, Samish Hill and Columbia have been warning about stolen political signs.
It’s illegal to remove a political advertisement without the owner’s permission, according to state law. Punishment of the misdemeanor-level crime can include up to 90 days in jail and a fine up to $1,000.
Political signs can be placed on private property, including someone’s lawn or the unpaved area next to the street, but cannot be placed on public property and city-owned land such as parks, or next to public buildings, according to the City of Bellingham.
Groden said previously some signs had been stolen in east Whatcom County during Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. Now the group is having to reorder more signs to replace those that have been taken.
“I just feel bad for the people that don’t have the money to spend to buy campaign signs that are getting their signs stolen,” she said. “With all the tension, they’re really getting more upset than a simple sign stealing would usually cause.”
This story was updated on Wednesday, Oct. 16 with comment from Tami Bhachu.
Annie Todd is CDN’s criminal justice/enterprise reporter; reach her at annietodd@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 130.
