Election signs advertise or promote candidates in federal, provincial, or municipal elections (including elections for local board or commissions). This includes signs, balloons, blimps, vehicle wraps, mobile signs on vehicles or trailers and bumper stickers intended to influence a person to vote for or against any candidate.
Election signs in Toronto must comply with the Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 693, Article II - Election Signs. The bylaw provides rules for election signs on private and public properties, outlines when election signs can be displayed and when they must be removed, and provides rules for campaign office signs.
Residents can contact 311 to report election signs that are in conflict with the bylaw.
Election signs cannot be larger than 1.2 square metres in area and higher than two metres above ground level, except:
Election signs cannot:
Election signs displayed indoors may be displayed at any height.
Election signs must also display the name of the candidate in a manner that is clear and legible.
See guidelines on where to place election signs.
Election signs can be displayed on fences provided that the election sign is displayed with the consent of the owner/occupant of the property.
Election signs can be displayed on private property with the consent of the owner/occupant of the property. When displayed on private property, election signs cannot be placed less than one metre from other election signs without the consent of the owner/occupant of the property. Property owners can remove elections signs from their private properties, if the signs are displayed without their consent.
Election signs can be displayed:
Election signs cannot be displayed on a median or island, adjacent to a voting place, or without the consent of the owner or occupant of the property beside the median.
*See the City of Toronto Road Classification System for clarification on collector, arterial and local roads
For municipal elections, election signs can be displayed 25 days prior to election day.
For provincial and federal elections, election signs can be displayed from the day the writ of election is issued.
When the day the writ of election is issued falls on a date of religious or cultural significance, election signs cannot be displayed until the following day.
Election signs must be removed 72 hours after the completion of voting on election day.
Candidates must remove election signs within 72 hours after an election. Election signs displayed on private property must be removed by the owner/occupant of the property. The owner/occupant can also request removal/retrieval by the candidate or third party who provided them the election sign(s).
Election signs displayed on public property must be removed by the candidate or third party responsible for their display.
The City may remove elections signs that are in conflict with the bylaw. Candidates will be notified if signs are removed by the City and provided information on when and where the signs can be retrieved from. Any signs not retrieved may be recycled, destroyed or disposed of by the City.
Following an election period, the City offers election sign recycling at designated Drop-Off Depots to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill. A timeframe to bring signs to designated locations is communicated to all candidates.
Visit Items Accepted at Drop-Off Depots for more information.
A campaign office sign is any sign that solely identifies the name of a candidate in a federal, provincial or municipal election and the location of a candidate’s campaign office, and contains no other message.
Campaign office signs may be displayed if it is part of a sign structure displayed in accordance with the requirements of Toronto Municipal Code, Chapter 694, Signs, General or, in accordance with the applicable sign permit administered by Toronto Building.
Directional signs to indicate the location of a campaign office are prohibited.
Campaign office signs may be displayed provided that regulations around placement of election signs are followed.
In the case of a candidate for the position of Councillor or Trustee, election signs are displayed at no more than one campaign office in the ward where the candidate is running for election.
In the case of a candidate for the position of Mayor, election signs are displayed at no more than four campaign offices.
An outsider election sign is any sign that has been displayed without the authorization, direction or involvement of a candidate.
Outsider election signs may be displayed on private property or public property, provided that:
To report election signs that are in conflict with the bylaw, contact 311 and submit a service request. Residents must provide:
Residents can contact 311 to submit complaints about election signs. If there is a complaint or information about a possible violation, Bylaw Enforcement Officers investigate, educate and/or take enforcement actions.
The goal is to resolve issues and ensure that candidates and residents are following the bylaw. Each issue is addressed on case-by-case basis to make sure reasonable, fair and appropriate actions are taken. For example, in some cases the issue may be resolved through education. In other cases, further enforcement action is required.
If candidates and residents do not comply with the bylaw, they are guilty of an offence. If they are issued a ticket and convicted, they may have to pay a fine for the offence set out in the table below.
If candidates and residents are issued a summons to court and convicted, they may have to pay a fine up to $100,000 or a daily fine of up to $10,000 for each day the violation continues. In addition they may have to pay a special fine for economic gains from the bylaw violation. If it is a corporation, every director or officer may have to pay a fine of no more than $100,000.
| Offence | Bylaw Provision | Fine |
|---|---|---|
| Display Election Sign without candidate name | 693-3.1A | $500 |
| Display Outsider Election Sign not registered by the third-party advertiser | 693-3.1B(1) | $500 |
| Display Outsider Election Sign without valid/current contact information | 693-3.1B(2) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign larger than 1.2 square metres on public property | 693-3.2A(1)(a) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign higher than 2.0 metres above ground level on public property | 693-3.2A(1)(a) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on public property within 1.5 metres of a curb/pavement edge | 693-3.2A(1)(b) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on public property within 0.6 metres of a sidewalk | 693-3.2A(1)(c) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on public property within 15 metres of an intersection/pedestrian crossover of an arterial/collector road | 693-3.2A(1)(d) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on public property within 3 metres of an intersection/pedestrian crossover of a local road | 693-3.2A(1)(d) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on public property on/adjacent to a voting place/City Park/City facility | 693-3.2A(1)(e) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on public property without consent of the owner/occupant of the abutting property | 693-3.2A(1)(f) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on a structure on public property without/contrary to an agreement with the City | 693-3.2A(2)(a) | $500 |
| Display an Election Sign on a structure on public property on/adjacent to a voting place/City Park/City facility | 693-3.2A(2)(b) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on TTC station advertising space on public property without/contrary to an agreement with the Toronto Transit Commission | 693-3.2A(3)(a) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on TTC station advertising space on public property that is illuminated without/contrary to an agreement with the Toronto Transit Commission | 693-3.2A(3)(a)[1] | $500 |
| Display Election Sign larger than 2.3 square metres on TTC station advertising space on public property | 693-3.2A(3)(a)[2] | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on TTC station advertising space on public property on/adjacent to a voting place | 693-3.2A(3)(a)[3] | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on TTC station advertising space on public property without consent of the Toronto Transit Commission | 693-3.2A(3)(a)[4] | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on TTC vehicle advertising space on public property without/contrary to an agreement with the Toronto Transit Commission | 693-3.2A(3)(b) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on TTC vehicle advertising space on public property that is illuminated without/contrary to an agreement with the Toronto Transit Commission | 693-3.2A(3)(b)[1] | $500 |
| Display Election Sign larger than 2.7 square metres on TTC vehicle advertising space on public property | 693-3.2A(3)(b)[2] | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on TTC vehicle advertising space on public property on/adjacent to a voting place | 693-3.2A(3)(b)[3] | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on TTC vehicle advertising space on public property without consent of the Toronto Transit Commission | 693-3.2A(3)(b)[4] | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on street installation dedicated advertising space on public property without/contrary to an agreement with the City | 693-3.2A(4)(a) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on street installation dedicated advertising space on public property that is illuminated without/contrary to an agreement with the City | 693-3.2A(4)(b) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on street installation dedicated advertising space on public property that is larger than the space | 693-3.2A(4)(c) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on street installation dedicated advertising space on public property on/adjacent to a voting place | 693-3.2A(4)(d) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on street installation dedicated advertising space on public property without consent of City/owner | 693-3.2A(4)(e) | $500 |
| Display non-permitted third-party election sign on public property | 693-3.2A(5)(a) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign larger than 1.2 square metres on private property | 693-3.3A(1) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign higher than 2.0 metres above ground level on private property | 693-3.3A(1) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on private property without consent of the owner/occupant | 693-3.3A(2) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign on private property with sign copy not in accordance with other applicable sign by-laws | 693-3.3A(3)(a) | $500 |
| Display non-compliant Outsider Election Sign on private property | 693-3.3B | $500 |
| Display Councillor/Trustee candidate Election Sign on more than one campaign office | 693-3.4A | $500 |
| Display Mayor candidate Election Sign on more than four campaign offices | 693-3.4B | $500 |
| Display Election Sign/Outsider Election Sign/Campaign Office Sign for a federal/provincial election before the writ is issued | 693-3.5A(1) | $500 |
| Display Election Sign/Outsider Municipal Election Sign/Campaign Office Sign for more than 25 days prior to voting day | 693-3.5A(2) | $500 |
| Fail to remove Election Sign/Outsider Election Sign 72 hours after voting day | 693-3.5B | $500 |
| Remove/alter/damage Election Sign/Outsider Election Sign | 693-3.6 | $500 |