What NJ residents should do with political signs post-election (opinion)

After months of mud-slinging, campaigning, and ugly political ads, the 2022 midterm election is finally in the rearview mirror. And although some places around the country might not know who their elected leaders will be for some time after the polls closed, at least now we can try to go back to what it was like without the politics.

Unfortunately, some people can't seem to let it go and allow politics to live in their heads at any given point of the day. And it's usually those who have to always make a point about why their political views are right and why everyone else is wrong if they don't align with them.

One place this rhetoric is often fueled is online, where those who allow politicians to live in their minds rent-free can hide behind a fake profile with a made-up name. Sadly, far too many people engage in what these keyboard warriors have to say which further keeps the ugliness of politics rolling along.

Another extension of that, however, is also found all around our neighborhoods. Now sure, in the time leading up to a campaign it's perfectly normal to see political signage everywhere. In fact, that's often a good thing since it helps get you engaged with who your local officials are, as well as those running nationally.

But after the election has concluded and a winner's been declared, that should be the time those signs come down. It just doesn't serve a purpose at that point to keep them up.

(If you're wondering who's in charge of political signage oversight, click here to check out that story).

If your candidate won, then great. No need to keep campaigning on their behalf. But if your candidate lost, do you really want to see that constant reminder in your neighbor's yard?

And then there's the fact that most people are sick and tired of anything having to do with politics. Once the dust settles, let's just go back to being the same old neighbors we've always been and put the election behind us. The results are in and it's time to move on.

Sadly for some, they just can't seem to let it go. And it's not just those whose candidates lost, but also those whose candidates won. Those signs keep the ugliness and hostility going, and it's something we really don't need here in New Jersey.

Speaking of signage, here's another note that most don't want to deal with. In fact, it's something we shouldn't even be talking about immediately after an election.

After a midterm election, do we really need to start with the next presidential cycle so soon? Doesn't doing this so early just divide us even more?

In fact, some of these presidential signs have popped up even well before the midterm elections got here. Why are we so obsessed with picking our next president even when we still have two more years to go?

We should at least wait until the new congress gets sworn in first and has a chance to get their agenda going before we start looking at who the next president will be. At least that makes more sense.

Are we allowed to be unhappy with the direction of the country? Absolutely. Is it OK to feel that the current occupant of the White House shouldn't be allowed to serve a second term? Yes to that as well.

But when we're still two years away from casting that vote, maybe we should wait and see who'll be the nominee first before declaring that our vote is going behind someone. At least wait until the spring to give the new congress a chance.

So let's take a little break from politics for a bit until we get into the new year and things start rolling along again. Yes, we won't be able to stop all those keyboard warriors online, but at least we can clean up our community from all those political signs.

And yes, this also goes for future elections. Honestly, right after one election is just too soon. Give it a few months at least.