The votes are in and a new group of candidates is preparing for November’s Election Day. With local elections comes an influx of election litter, otherwise known as the colorful collage of multi-colored campaign signs that seem to line our streets.

Candidates choose a color to stand out from the rest to make an underlying statement. It’s Thursday, however, two days after the ballots were cast.

Whether they emerged victorious or came up just a few votes short, it’s time for candidates to do the right, environmentally friendly thing by cleaning up the election litter.

North Carolina general statute 163-22.3 and 163-33.3 require election officials to notify all candidates of “the provisions concerning campaign signs in G.S. 136-32 and G.S. 14-156, and the rules adopted by the Department of Transportation pursuant to G.S. 136-18.”

Those rules include where and when you can legally place signs prior to an election, as well as guidelines for cleanup.

According to G.S. 136-32, candidates have 10 days after the election to pick up their signs. If not, they can face penalties.

While it wasn’t the general election, but the primaries, why wait? It’s two days later and signs still litter certain areas of Beaufort County. While we understand that some candidates are on their way to a second primary and June, and those Tuesday night winners are gearing up for November, the detritus must go.

All it’s going to take is another storm bringing high winds, which we’ve seen in abundance this spring, to spread election litter like tumbleweeds.