Medford, MA Sign Regulations: Political Signs (2026)

Section 94-6.2.14, item 3 of the Medford zoning ordinance classifies political signs as temporary signs, meaning no permit is required under the section's general rule that temporary signs 'shall not require a permit, but is subject to all applicable regulations in this section.' The ordinance allows 'one or more' political signs on private property, unlike most other temporary-sign categories in the same section that cap the count at one, and each sign is limited to 12 square feet, the same cap given to noncommercial signs under item 4.

As with other temporary signs, a political sign cannot be internally illuminated or use neon, and the general 30-day display window applies, extendable once by the building commissioner for another 30 days, for a maximum of 60 continuous days within any 365-day period; at the end of the approved period the sign must come down and cannot be replaced by another sign bearing the same or similar message. Political signs are also exempt from the wall-sign and freestanding-sign restrictions that apply to permanent commercial signage in sections 94-6.2.11 and 94-6.2.12, because they fall under the separate temporary-sign track. The building commissioner enforces the section under 94-6.2.7 on referral or written complaint.