Nashua, NH Sign Regulations: Political Signs (2026)

Nashua's sign regulations are codified in Chapter 190 (Land Use), Article X (Signs), at §§ 190-97 through 190-108, adopted by the Board of Aldermen on November 9, 2005, by Ordinance No. O-04-19. The chapter is written to be content-neutral: it states 'no sign shall be subject to any limitation based on the content of the message contained on such sign,' and 'any sign authorized in this chapter may contain any non-commercial copy in lieu of any other copy.' Political signs are expressly exempt from the maximum cumulative number and maximum cumulative area limits that apply within each zoning district. Temporary signs (the category that covers most political/campaign signs) are governed by § 190-106, which states that only one ground or wall sign used as a temporary sign is permitted per premises — but there is no restriction on the number of signs used for political speech. § 190-106 also provides that no temporary sign shall be located in the public right-of-way or on public property; minimum setback is 10 feet from the public right-of-way and 25 feet from the point of intersecting street rights-of-way; maximum sign area is 32 square feet; and maximum height is 8 feet measured from grade. State law (RSA 664:17 — Placement and Removal of Political Advertising) supplements the local rule: no political advertising may be placed on or affixed to public property, utility poles, or highway signs without the property owner's consent; political advertising may be placed within state-owned rights-of-way only if it does not obstruct safe traffic flow and the underlying landowner consents; and all political advertising must be removed by the candidate no later than the second Friday following the election (unless the candidate is a primary winner advancing to a general election). New Hampshire has no statewide preemption of municipal political-sign timing or content rules, but Reed v. Town of Gilbert (576 U.S. 155, 2015) requires content neutrality, which Nashua's code reflects on its face.