5 September, 2019

Election sign complaints

A Devonport-Takapuna Local Board ticket has had two complaints lodged about its signs.

Danny Watson, Toni van Tonder and Aidan Bennett, who are campaigning under #afreshapproach, have been forced to remove one sign, while another sign is under investigation by the Auckland Council compliance team.

The Flagstaff has also fielded complaints about the placement of other signs by the trio.

A New Zealand Defence spokesman confirmed that signs had been placed illegally on fences bordering on its property and it had asked candidates to remove them. The Flagstaff photographed a #afreshapproach sign on a Defence property on the corner of Montgomery Ave. It was there at least a week before being taken down.

Auckland electoral officer Dale Offoskee confirmed a complaint had been made about the size of one of the ticket’s signs, near Westlake Girls High School. He forwarded the complaint to Auckland Council’s compliance team.

The Flagstaff has also received complaints about the ticket erecting four signs on Esmonde Rd, when other teams or candidates appear to have just one.

However Offoskee said they appeared to comply even though it seems there is a convention that only one sign went up per candidate or ticket.

Bennett said the Montgomery Ave/Lake Rd issue was a miss communication between his team and it was removed as soon as the problem was known. The sign at Atlas Concrete (near Westlake Girls) was corrected 2-3 hours after official notification, he said.

This article originally appeared in the September 6 edition of the Devonport Flagstaff. Download PDF.