San Leandro, CA Sign Regulations: Political Signs (2026)
Key Facts
- Max size (private property)
- 16 sq ft
- Declaration of Intent
- Required, file with City Clerk 2+ days before install
- On City property
- Prohibited
- Caltrans timing
- Post 90 days before, remove within 10 days after election
- HOA preemption
- Civil Code §4710: up to 9 sq ft signs / 15 sq ft flags protected
Summary
San Leandro caps political signs at 16 square feet on private property and requires a Declaration of Intent filed with the City Clerk at least 2 days before installation. Signs are prohibited on all City property; on Caltrans/state highway property they may be posted no earlier than 90 days before the election and must be removed within 10 days after.
4710. (a) The governing documents may not prohibit posting or displaying of noncommercial signs, posters, flags, or banners on or in a member's separate interest, except as required for the protection of public health or safety or if the posting or display would violate a local, state, or federal law.
(b) For purposes of this section, a noncommercial sign, poster, flag, or banner may be made of paper, cardboard, cloth, plastic, or fabric, and may be posted or displayed from the yard, window, door, balcony, or outside wall of the separate interest, but may not be made of lights, roofing, siding, paving materials, flora, or balloons, or any other similar building, landscaping, or decorative component, or include the painting of architectural surfaces.
(c) An association may prohibit noncommercial signs and posters that are more than nine square feet in size and noncommercial flags or banners that are more than 15 square feet in size. (Added by Stats. 2012, Ch. 180, Sec. 2. (AB 805) Effective January 1, 2013. Operative January 1, 2014, by Sec. 3 of Ch. 180.)
Full Breakdown
12 (Signs), the maximum allowable size of a political sign is 16 square feet. Before installing any temporary political sign anywhere in the City, the person installing the sign, or the person on whose behalf the signs are installed, must file a Declaration of Intent with the City Clerk (or Zoning Enforcement Official's designee) at least two days prior to installation. The declaration includes an agreement to remove non-compliant signs and to pay the City's removal costs. ). For Caltrans rights-of-way, a separate Statement of Responsibility must be filed with the State Department of Transportation; signs may be posted no sooner than 90 days before the election and must be removed within 10 days afterward, with no signs allowed within highway rights-of-way or within 660 feet of a Landscaped Freeway.
For HOA residents, California Civil Code §4710 (Davis-Stirling Act) preempts HOA bans on noncommercial signs up to 9 sq ft (and flags/banners up to 15 sq ft) made of paper, cardboard, cloth, plastic, or fabric within the owner's separate interest.
Violations & Fines
A sign erected without complying with the Sign Code is a violation of San Leandro Zoning Code §4-1814. Non-compliant or abandoned campaign signs may be removed by the City and the cost of removal billed to the person who filed the Declaration of Intent. Signs on Caltrans property without a filed Statement of Responsibility are subject to removal by the State. Report illegal signs to the City Clerk's Office.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to put a campaign sign in my yard in San Leandro?
Can my HOA in San Leandro ban political signs?
When do I have to take my campaign signs down?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Leandro
California rules heatmap·Compare San Leandro to another location·View the California sign regulations overview
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How other cities in Alameda County handle political signs.