Reporting a concern with an election sign

Election signs advertise or promote candidates in federal, provincial, or municipal elections (including elections for local boards 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. For more information about rules governing election signs, please visit toronto.ca/ElectionSigns.

Reporting election signs

Signs placed on private property without the permission of the property owner can be removed and do not need to be reported to the City. The City will respond to complaints regarding the placement of election signs on City property, or signs that do not meet the requirements for size, height, and spacing.

To report a concern with an election sign, click the link below, or call 311.

You must provide:

The name of the offending candidate or the third-party advertiser displaying the election sign
The address or location of the sign
Description of specific landmarks if the address of the sign cannot be provided
The reason for the complaint

Regulations for signs on private property (commercial or residential):

If an election sign is on your private property or in front of your private property and you did not give consent for the sign, you have the right to remove the election sign and dispose of it. You can also contact the candidate's office to have them remove the election sign.
If you are a tenant in an apartment building, you are not permitted to post an election sign on the building's property/lawn, without the consent of the apartment building owner. You are permitted to post an election sign in your dwelling unit window/balcony.

Size and height of election signs

Election signs cannot be larger than 1.2 square meters in area and higher than two meters above ground level, except:

on campaign offices;
on TTC dedicated advertising spaces;
on-street installation of dedicated advertising spaces;
on third-party advertising spaces (e.g., billboards);
when displayed indoors;
on windows and balconies.

Election signs cannot:

be illuminated (unless on advertising spaces mentioned above);
be attached to trees;
obstruct visibility or block sightlines for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists;
contain the City of Toronto logo.

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.

Where election signs can be displayed

Election signs can be displayed on fences, private properties (with the consent of the owner/occupant), and public properties (in compliance with the bylaw). Property owners can remove election signs from their private properties if the signs are displayed without their consent.

Please visit toronto.ca/ElectionSigns for detailed information on where election signs can be displayed.

When to display election signs:

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.
It is the responsibility of the owner of the private property to remove election signs on their property or advise the candidate that removal is required.

Removal of illegally placed election signs

The City will remove election signs that are in conflict with the bylaw. Candidates will have the opportunity to retrieve any signs removed by the City at a time and location after the election. Any signs not retrieved may be recycled, destroyed, or disposed of by the City. Please visit toronto.ca/ElectionSigns for more information on how to retrieve signs.

Campaign office signs

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. For more information on where campaign office signs may be displayed and regulations on the placement, visit toronto.ca/ElectionSigns