Dearborn, MI Sign Regulations: Political Signs (2026)
Key Facts
- Max size
- 9 sq ft per side
- Setback
- 3 ft from property line
- Duration
- 60 days max
- Permit
- none required
- City property
- political material barred
Summary
Dearborn treats political signs like any other temporary sign: no permit needed, but capped at 9 square feet per side, set back 3 feet from the property line, unlit, and up for at most 60 days.
All residential dwellings...shall be permitted on-premise temporary ground signs... Maximum sign size. Each sign shall not exceed nine square feet per side... Permitted signs shall not be located in public rights-of-way and shall be set back at least three feet from the property line... Residential temporary signs shall not be illuminated... A temporary sign shall be permitted for no more than 60 consecutive days and be taken down no later than five days after the event it pertains to is completed... A sign permit is not required.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-07: Code: Updated through: July 22, 2026 | Zoning: Updated through: July 22, 2026).
Full Breakdown
Dearborn's sign code carves out no special category for campaign signs -- Sec. 5-1336(c)(1) treats them as ordinary residential temporary signs. Any single-family house, two-family dwelling, or ground-level multi-family unit may post an on-premise temporary ground sign up to nine square feet per side, no permit required. It must sit at least three feet off the property line, stay out of the right-of-way, and cannot be illuminated. It comes down within 60 consecutive days, and no later than five days after the event -- an election, say -- it relates to. City Charter Sec. 12.7 separately bars political material from City property and within 100 feet of a City building entrance.
Violations & Fines
A sign exceeding nine square feet, sitting in the right-of-way or public property, illuminated, or left up past 60 days (or 5 days post-election) is subject to removal and enforcement as a code violation under Dearborn's sign ordinance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit for a political yard sign in Dearborn?
Can I put a campaign sign on city property in Dearborn?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Dearborn
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Political Signs in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Wayne County handle political signs.