Nancy Edmonds Hanson

A politically charged epidemic has swept Moorhead homes this fall – the theft of political signs.
While Capt. Deric Swenson of the Moorhead Police can’t quantify an uptick above and beyond any other political year, DFL activist Athena Gracyk begs to disagree.
“People steal opponents signs in every election season,” the chair of the Clay County DFL Organizing Unit concedes. “In 2016, it wasn’t this bad, but we didn’t have as many Hillary Clinton signs around.
“But this year, there’s been a war on our Biden-Harris signs. They started disappearing right away after we started putting them out in the middle of September, and it’s been going on ever since.”
The DFL group purchased 1,000 signs at the beginning of the season. “It quickly became clear that signs were being stolen at a huge rate, not just here but across Greater Minnesota,” she says. “Some people seem to dismiss it as a petty act. It’s not. It’s taking away people’s right of free speech, their right to express their political beliefs. Whatever those beliefs, everyone has a perfect right to put those signs out in their yards.
“It’s just thievery, and it’s wrong, no matter who does it.”
Swenson blames the heated election year for what may be an increase in stolen signs. “Both sides have said their signs are being stolen or vandalized. What’s typically a petty offense has become quite heated this year. We don’t want to see it lead to confrontations.”
Theft of signs from private property would be a misdemeanor, a so-called “payable offense” involving a fine. He adds, “If multiple signs were stolen, it could work its way up to a felony.” But no one has been charged this fall. While the department has received calls about missing signs and vandalism – like those of the incumbent where the T has been painted out, leaving “rump” – it logs them under the general category of thefts and can’t break out a more specific tabulation.
Frustrating by the disappearing signs, the DFL group responded in the only way it could – by obtaining replacements. Lots of replacements. “We ordered another 2,000 signs and have been giving them out free to everyone who needs theirs replaced,” Gracyk reports. They used unspent budget money raised by fund-raisers in 2018 and 2019 to purchase three sizes of replacements – small, medium and 4 by 8 feet. It was an unexpected silver lining of the pandemic, which has ruled out much of the office expenses related to getting out the vote.
The replenishment has enabled the Moorhead activist to share signs far and wide. Not only have residents been encouraged to pick up replacements for those which are lost; many have gone to rural areas north and east of the city, where the thefts are just as acute. “We’ve even sent hundreds to Valley City and Fargo,” she says. “We’re all in this together.”
A few remain to replace last-minute losses. She recommends taking surviving signs inside on Halloween.
One memorable low point: On the night after MSUM hosted a state Republican candidate, a number of blocks south of the campus were denuded of every Biden sign in sight. But after she took to social media to complain, someone’s guilty conscience must have prevailed. “The next morning, I woke up to find a pile of nine signs leaning against my house,” she notes. “I don’t know how or who brought them back.” She adds, “And we hadn’t even put three of them out ourselves.”
(The Extra attempted to reach a Republican spokesperson to comment for this story, but had received no response by presstime.)