Political signs are allowed on private property across Kanawha County. Unincorporated areas have little sign regulation; Charleston's zoning code governs signs inside the city. Placing signs in a public right-of-way is prohibited, and content-based limits are unconstitutional after Reed v. Gilbert.
On private property, political signs are protected speech throughout Kanawha County. The unincorporated county has no comprehensive sign ordinance, so yard signs there face few limits, while inside Charleston, South Charleston, St. Albans, Dunbar, and Nitro the city zoning sign code sets size and placement rules. Everywhere, signs staked in a public road right-of-way or on utility poles may be removed. Along interstate and primary highways, West Virginia's outdoor advertising law (§17-22) and the Division of Highways control roadside displays, though that statute targets larger commercial signage rather than a single yard sign. After Reed v. Town of Gilbert (2015), a city may not treat a political sign differently based on its message.
A political sign in a public road right-of-way or on a utility pole is removed. Inside a city, an oversized or improperly placed sign draws a zoning correction notice under the municipal sign code.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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