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Candidates say political signs disappearing

As early voting is set to begin in Virginia, several Suffolk candidates for public office are reporting their signs are turning up missing. 

Mayor Michael Duman, who is seeking reelection, City Council Sleepy Hole Borough Candidate Ebony Wright, and Karen Jenkins, representing Mayoral Candidate Clinton Jenkins, each described the disappearance of their campaign signs. During two recent interviews, both Duman and Wright detailed the situation facing their individual campaigns. Duman says that he received a Sunday evening phone call around 7:30 p.m. from a citizen that one of his signs had been removed in the Downtown area.

“I believe it was adjacent to Birdsong Peanuts, and that seemed to be an isolated event that was on [Sunday]. Yesterday, when I came to work as I was driving down Route 10, I noticed that the sign was missing on Godwin Boulevard, almost directly across from the dealership that is in a citizen’s yard,” Duman said. “So whoever vandalized that sign actually trespassed on an individual’s property to have the sign removed, and that gave me a little reason for concern.”

Duman also detailed that during the evening on that same Tuesday, he noticed another campaign sign that had been removed near Barton Ford Suffolk. Duman says that “about six” signs in total disappeared.

“These are 4×4 signs,” he said. “Two steel poles and there’s six zip ties on each one of them. So they’re hard to take off and had to be cut off.”

Wright says that while she was out of town last week, she received a phone call from her husband on the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 20 and a follow-up text that same afternoon. He notified her that signage across the street from the Suffolk Police Station and a 4×4 sign behind the Harris Teeter at the corner of Shoulders Hill went missing.

“And I was like, ‘But how? Those are both on the city property.’ And he was like, ‘Well, yours are gone, but your opponents aren’t gone.’ I said, ‘Ok.’ So I didn’t want him to go trying to track nobody down while I wasn’t home,” Wright said with a laugh.

Wright says that on Thursday, Aug. 22, she received another call and follow up texts on one 4×4 and four yard signs located at Bridge Rd. and Bernhowe Manor going missing. Wright also received a Monday, Aug. 19 video of an older male in a blue shirt and khaki shorts taking away Wright’s signage. She also detailed signage near Fireflies on Bennett’s Creek on a city median right of way off of Bridge Rd. going missing as well. On what both campaigns are doing moving forward, Duman says he and his campaign team have not filed a police report, but will do so if another incident occurs. Wright and her team are working on getting more signs to replace those that went missing. 

In a statement, Karen Jenkins says that it is unfortunate that individuals find it “acceptable behavior” to remove and destroy campaign signs. 

“Week after week, signs costing hundreds and hundreds of dollars are purchased only to be taken down, stolen, or defaced. This has been done time and time again regarding campaign signs of Mayoral Candidate Clint Jenkins. Those who are resorting to these acts of vandalism may think they’re striking a blow against the Jenkins campaign, but in reality, they are damaging the democratic process. They are impeding the process of having fair and open elections in our City,” Jenkins said. Every time someone removes a legally placed campaign sign, they are not just removing a campaign sign but removing and defacing an important part of our democratic process. They show no regard whatsoever for the democratic process that many Americans fought and died for. They show no concern for supporting an informed electorate when it has [been] said time and time again that “an educated citizenry is a vital requisite for our survival as a free people.” They are only interested in winning at all cost, even if it means dismantling time honored traditions and harming our democratic system and the electoral process.”

Duman and Wright also shared thoughts on their situations.

“Acts such as this, they show a total disrespect for the democratic process and the candidates that it affects, and I think it reflects negatively on all the candidates,” Duman said. “and it’s unfortunate that certain individuals have stooped to these tactics during this election…”

Wright calls the situation, “unsportsmanlike.”

“Let others run their race and let the voters decide,” Wright said. “When you take signs, you’re taking hard-earned money from donors who are donating to my campaign for me to make these purchases, and it’s just really not a game. And it’s just, it’s just unfortunate.”

According to the Suffolk Police Department, theft of election signage with a value of $1000 or more is a felony. Anything less than $1000 is a misdemeanor. SPD also states that there have been no reports of election signage stealing.