The Maine Agenda › Live in Maine
When Political Signs Can Legally Go Up in Maine, and Where They Cannot
Somewhere in Greater Portland right now there is a campaign volunteer with a car full of corrugated plastic signs, reading a photocopied handout from a town office, getting the most important number wrong.
The handout is not lying. It is just older than the law. Maine rewrote its temporary sign statute in 2015, again in 2017, and again in 2019, and the guidance documents that towns hand to candidates were written somewhere along that path and never fully caught up. Several of them still circulate a rule the Legislature repealed.
Here is the finding, and it matters most to whoever is planning a sign push for November 3, 2026. There is no such thing in Maine law as a window that opens six weeks before an election. The rule is a calendar budget: you get twelve weeks in the public right-of-way per calendar year, and no more than six of those weeks between July 1 and December 31. Election Day does not enter into it. If you want a sign standing in the road right-of-way on Election Day this fall, the arithmetic works out to putting it up on or after September 23 and taking it down the morning after.
The statute, and the sentence that trips everyone
The governing text is Title 23, section 1913-A, subsection 1, paragraph L, last amended by Public Law 2019, chapter 594. Read it as a budget rather than a countdown:
Temporary signs may be placed within the public right-of-way for a maximum of twelve weeks per calendar year, except that a temporary sign may not be placed within the public right-of-way for more than six weeks from January 1st to June 30th, or for more than six weeks from July 1st to December 31st.
The version most people still repeat is election-anchored: signs go up six weeks before the primary or general election and come down within a week after. Whatever the precise old wording was, that framing is not in the statute now. Paragraph L's own section history records amendments in 2015, 2017 and 2019, and the text those amendments left behind does not mention elections anywhere. Which brings us to the second thing almost nobody knows.
It is not a political sign rule. The statute says "temporary sign." A yard sale sign, a lost dog sign, a church supper sign, a "we buy houses" sign and a candidate's sign are the same object in the eyes of Title 23. They all draw from the same twelve-week annual allowance, and they are all subject to every restriction below. The word "political" appears nowhere in paragraph L.
Old Orchard Beach publishes a handout headed "updated with 2019 changes" that correctly states the twelve-weeks-per-calendar-year figure. It does not mention the six-week half-year cap. A candidate reading it in August could reasonably conclude they have twelve weeks to spend before November, which is exactly double what the law allows them.
Portland's own candidate page, by contrast, gets it right and even dates the change: it tells candidates the law effective June 16, 2020 allows six weeks from January 1 to June 30 and another six weeks between July 1 and December 31. If you are looking for one municipal source in this region that matches the statute, that is the one.
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The rest of the state rule, which is stricter than people assume
Size. In the right-of-way, a temporary sign may not exceed four feet by eight feet. Outside the right-of-way, on private property with the owner's permission, subsection 2-A caps a sign at fifty square feet. That is a large sign, and it is the reason the front lawn is where campaigns should be concentrating.
Spacing. A temporary sign may not be placed within thirty feet of another temporary sign bearing the same or substantially the same message. The row of nine identical signs along a stretch of Route 1 is not legal, and it never was.
Labeling, the requirement nearly everyone ignores. Every temporary sign in the right-of-way must be marked with the name and address of the person or organization that placed it, and the date it was erected. This is not a formality. It is the enforcement mechanism: it is how MaineDOT decides whether a sign has overstayed its six weeks. South Portland's clerk notes that the office receives complaints about unmarked signs every year and suggests a small sticker on the back. Signs in the right-of-way that lack the required information may be removed.
Six places a sign may not go, at all. Subsection 5 flatly prohibits erecting one of these signs on a traffic control sign or device, a public utility pole or fixture, a rotary traffic island, a tree in a public right-of-way, a control-of-access area, or a median less than six feet wide. It also may not be painted or drawn on a rock or other natural feature. If you have wondered whether the tree in the strip between the sidewalk and the road counts as yours, it does not, and Maine has a whole separate statute making that clear, which we cover in our guide to neighbors, trees and property lines.
The interstate. Subsection 6 keeps these signs out of the interstate right-of-way and out of any position within 660 feet of the nearest edge where the message can be read from the highway.
Taking down somebody else's sign is a violation, with a number attached
Title 23, section 1917-B, enacted in 2015, is one sentence: a person who takes, defaces or disturbs a sign lawfully placed in the public right-of-way commits a civil violation for which a fine of up to $250 may be adjudged.
The exception matters as much as the rule. Section 1917-B does not apply to a person authorized to remove such signs, meaning MaineDOT and municipal crews clearing signs that are expired, unmarked or in a prohibited spot. And a sign placed on private property without permission may be removed by the landowner. Otherwise, the answer to "can I pull down the sign I disagree with" is no, and there is a dollar figure on it.
The 250-foot rule on Election Day, where two neighboring cities disagree
A separate statute, Title 21-A section 682, handles the polls. Subsection 3 prohibits displaying advertising material or campaign literature intended to influence a voter, on any public property within 250 feet of the entrance to either the voting place or the building in which the registrar's office is located. A knowing violation is a Class E crime. Subsection 6 carves out one thing worth knowing: for this section, "public property" does not include a public right-of-way across privately owned property if it is an easement right-of-way.
Section 682 opens by saying it governs activities prohibited on election day, but the registrar's office clause only makes sense across the absentee period, and the statute does not state how many days that is. The two largest cities in this region tell their candidates different numbers. Portland says the restriction applies for the 45 days preceding an election during the hours the Clerk's Office may be conducting absentee voting. South Portland says 30 days before Election Day, naming City Hall. Neither is misquoting the statute, because the statute does not supply a number. If you are placing signs near a city hall this fall, use the longer figure and save yourself the phone call.
What the towns add on top
The state rule governs the road right-of-way. The town code governs your lawn, and it varies more than you would expect.
Gorham does not regulate political signs at all. Section 300-2.16 of the Land Use and Development Code, in the article amended March 7, 2017, states that the provisions of the sign article "shall not apply to the following types of nonilluminated signs: public safety and information, political, traffic control and directional that contain no advertising," and continues through a list of other exemptions. No size limit, no time limit, and under section 300-2.17.O an exempt sign is one of the few kinds Gorham allows off-premises.
Windham points directly at the state. Section 120-709.C of Chapter 120, Article 7 permits "categorical signs as defined by 23 M.R.S.A. section 1913-A, as amended" in any zone without a permit, up to thirty-two square feet. Windham has no yard-sign category of its own.
Cape Elizabeth wrote a content-neutral rule and enforces it on time rather than on subject. Chapter 21, effective February 9, 2017, defines a temporary sign as any sign erected for eight weeks or less in a calendar year, caps installation at eight weeks per year, and limits a temporary sign to six square feet per side. Section 21-6-1.B lets any noncommercial message substitute for any other. Note that eight weeks per year is tighter than the state's twelve.
Westbrook rebuilt its sign article from scratch on August 3, 2020, and it mirrors the state rule closely: temporary signs in the right-of-way need no permit, must be noncommercial, may not exceed two feet by three feet, must carry the name, address and date, must keep thirty feet from a matching message, and may not stand more than twelve weeks in a calendar year. Westbrook's residential private-property list, by contrast, covers real estate and construction signs and does not create a general yard-sign category.
Falmouth treats political signs as temporary signs and requires no permit, allowing sixteen square feet for a freestanding residential sign, up to 120 days per year on a private lot, and 42 days per year in the right-of-way, where signs are capped at seven square feet. We read this from the town's own candidate fact sheet rather than from the codified section, so treat the numbers as good and the section citation as unconfirmed.
Yarmouth is the one place where the town text and the state text point in different directions. Chapter 701, Article II, section C.9.g reads: "Signs, permanent or temporary, other than Municipal or State signs, shall not be erected within the right-of-way of any street or approved sight easements." Section C.5.h(2) separately provides that temporary signs for a special event "such as an election or sale" must be placed no more than four weeks before the event and removed within five days after. Four weeks is shorter than the state's six, and a flat right-of-way ban is not what section 1913-A contemplates. We are not going to tell you which text wins; that is a question for a lawyer or the town. We will tell you that in Yarmouth you should ask before you stake anything along a street.
Three towns we could not read. We did not get into Scarborough's Chapter 405 section XII, Cumberland's section 315-63, or Freeport's Chapter 23. Every route we tried returned an empty body or an authorization wall, and that is a statement about the documents, not about the towns. Do not read it as "these towns have no rule." We will re-check all three before the next general election cycle and update this page.
After the election
The state statute has no post-election removal deadline, because it has no election hook at all. Your six-week clock is your six-week clock. But South Portland warns candidates that signs left standing six weeks after their posted date will be removed, which is the same thing arrived at from the other end. Yarmouth's own rule gives you five days after the event.
The practical advice is the boring advice. Write the date on the back of every sign, keep a list of where you put them, and collect them the morning after. Most candidates in this region reuse the same signs for years, and the ones who lose them lose them because nobody wrote down where they went.
If you are new to voting here, our guide to registering to vote as a new Maine resident covers same-day registration and what to bring. And if the sign in question is going up near a property line rather than a road, the setback questions are in our fence rules by town guide.
FAQ
When can I put up political signs in Maine for the November 2026 election?
For a sign in the public road right-of-way, count backward six weeks from Election Day, which is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. A sign placed on September 23 and removed on November 4 uses almost exactly the full six-week allowance that Title 23, section 1913-A gives you for the July 1 through December 31 half of the year. On private property, outside the right-of-way, with the owner's permission, there is no state time limit at all.
Is it really six weeks and not twelve?
Both numbers are in the statute and they answer different questions. Twelve weeks is the annual total for a temporary sign in the public right-of-way. Six weeks is the maximum you may use in either half of the year. Because the general election falls in the second half, the operative number this fall is six. Guidance handouts that state only the twelve-week figure are incomplete.
Can someone legally remove or take my campaign sign?
Not if it was lawfully placed. Under Title 23, section 1917-B, taking, defacing or disturbing a sign placed in the public right-of-way in accordance with section 1913-A is a civil violation carrying a fine of up to $250. The exception covers officials authorized to remove signs, which includes clearing signs that are expired, unlabeled or in a prohibited location, and a private landowner may remove a sign placed on their land without permission.
How big can a political sign be in Maine?
In the public right-of-way, no larger than four feet by eight feet. Outside the right-of-way, Title 23, section 1913-A, subsection 2-A caps a sign at fifty square feet. Individual towns set tighter limits on private property: Cape Elizabeth allows six square feet per side, Falmouth sixteen for a freestanding residential sign, and Westbrook restricts right-of-way signs to two feet by three feet.
Do the rules only apply to political signs?
No, and this is the most common misreading. Title 23 regulates "temporary signs" without regard to message. A yard sale sign, a lost pet sign, a fundraiser sign and a campaign sign all draw on the same twelve-week annual allowance and all carry the same size, spacing and labeling requirements.
Do I have to write anything on the sign itself?
Yes, for any temporary sign in the public right-of-way. The statute requires the name and address of the individual, entity or organization that placed the sign, plus the date it was erected. A small sticker on the back satisfies it. Signs without this information can be removed, and in practice this is the most-ignored requirement in the whole statute.
How close to the polls can signs go on Election Day?
Title 21-A, section 682, subsection 3 prohibits displaying campaign material on public property within 250 feet of the entrance to the voting place or to the building housing the registrar's office. A knowing violation is a Class E crime. The statute does not say how many days the registrar's-office restriction runs, and towns differ: Portland tells candidates 45 days before an election, South Portland says 30.