In a 10 mile stretch of Highway 501 between Conway and Myrtle Beach, on one side of the highway, we counted 125 campaign signs.
It's two weeks until Primary Election Day and the candidates are doing everything they can to get their message out. That includes thousands of yard signs that seem to be sprouting up on every street corner.
In a 10 mile stretch of Highway 501 between Conway and Myrtle Beach, on one side of the highway, we counted 125 campaign signs. A political expert at Coastal Carolina University says yard signs may help candidates, but voters don't have much good to say about them.
"I think they're obnoxious. They're distracting and it looks terrible," said Donna Tripdoi.
"I hate them in nice people's yards," said Sandra Mininno.
And those who don't have strong opinions, don't pay much attention to yard signs at all. "Very seldomly. I'm too busy driving," said Bill Lawless.
CCU Political Science professor Frederick Wood says yard signs help give candidates name recognition and the impression of popularity. "So if you're driving around and you're driving down a street and you see 30 yard signs "Vote for Joel" you're gonna vote for Joel, because it looks like he's gonna be the guy who's gonna win the election."
But folks we talked to, like Austin Sanders, say the signs don't really influence their vote. "I notice names, but I mean if I'm going to go vote, I'll do research on my own and figure out what they're about."
There's also the risk that a candidate's message can get lost or overlooked in a swarm of signs. "That's why they try to keep the words on the sign very simple. Usually just the name and the office," said Professor Wood.
Wood says yard signs do help candidates, especially in down-ballot, local elections. For one thing, the signs are cheap.
Wood says people say they vote for candidates because of the issues, but in reality, there are some elections that are decided mostly on name recognition.
And that's why we'll continue to see so many of them right up until election day.
In Horry County, the law says campaign signs are supposed to come down within three days after the election.
