Asheville, NC Sign Regulations: Political Signs (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- City Code Sec. 7-13-2(d)(6)
- Permit required
- No
- Faces allowed
- Two display faces per sign
- Earliest posting
- 30 days before primary; 45 before general
- Removal deadline
- Within 5 days after the election
- Off-premises signs
- Exempt from the timing rules
- Civil penalty
- $100/day under Sec. 7-18-2(b)(1)
Summary
Asheville allows political campaign signs in every zoning district without a sign permit, but ties them to the election calendar. City Code Sec. 7-13-2(d)(6) caps each sign at two display faces, bars posting more than 30 days before a primary (45 days before a general or runoff), and requires removal within five days after the vote.
(6) Political signs. Signs for candidates or election for issues on a ballot shall be allowed in any zoning district providing such signs do not exceed equity square feet in area per display face and two faces per sign. All such signs may not be erected prior to 30 days before the first official day of polling for the appropriate primary, or 45 days before the appropriate general or run-off referendum and must be removed within five days after the primary, general or run-off election or referendum. Provided, however, nothing herein shall prohibit the use of off-premises signs for such candidates or issues according to the restrictions for such signs in zoning districts where they are permitted. Such off-premises signs shall not be subject to the time limits for erection prior to removal following any election. In all cases, the property owner and the political candidate shall be equally responsible for the removal of the signs.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-5: Contains Supplement, current through Ordinance 5245, passed 7-28-2026 | State legislation current through 2025 A.L.S. #3).
Full Breakdown
Political signs sit among the permit-exempt signs listed in Sec. 7-13-2(d) of the city's sign article. The code lets a candidate or ballot-issue sign go up in any zoning district, residential or commercial, without a zoning permit, and caps every sign at two display faces. Timing is fixed to the election calendar: signs cannot be erected earlier than 30 days before the first day of primary polling, or earlier than 45 days before a general or run-off referendum, and every sign must come down within five days after that primary, general, or run-off election.
The ordinance carves out one exception: off-premises political signs, meaning signs placed on a lot other than the candidate's or the sign sponsor's own property, are exempt from those erection and removal deadlines and instead follow the standard off-premises sign rules for whichever zoning district hosts them. Responsibility for taking a sign down does not fall on the property owner alone. Sec. 7-13-2(d)(6) makes the property owner and the political candidate equally responsible for the removal of the signs, so a candidate cannot point to a homeowner's inaction as a defense once the five-day window closes.
The current codification of this subsection prints the maximum display-area figure as "equity square feet" rather than a numeral, an apparent transcription error in the online code that leaves the exact square-footage cap unclear from the text itself; every other limit in the subsection, including the two-face cap and the election-tied deadlines, is unambiguous.
Violations & Fines
Sign violations citywide, including noncompliant political signs, are enforced under Sec. 7-18-2(b)(1), which sets a civil penalty of $100.00 per day for each day a violation continues after the offender is cited, recoverable by the city as a civil debt if unpaid. Because both the property owner and the candidate are named as responsible parties under Sec. 7-13-2(d)(6), the city can pursue either one for a sign left up past the five-day post-election deadline.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to put up a political yard sign in Asheville?
How early can I put out a campaign sign before an Asheville election?
When do political signs have to come down after the election?
Are off-premises political signs treated differently?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Asheville
Compare Asheville to another location·View the North Carolina sign regulations overview
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