Three Minute Fiction

Three Minute Fiction

Share this post

Three Minute Fiction
Three Minute Fiction
The Campaign Signs
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More

The Campaign Signs

Those blights on the side of the roads during election time

David W. Miller's avatar
David W. Miller
Apr 30, 2023
1

Share this post

Three Minute Fiction
Three Minute Fiction
The Campaign Signs
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
Share

Out came the signs.

Every year, large signs, small signs, bland signs, colorful signs all came out. All promoting a candidate who was better than the rest. School board seats, county officials, city council, mayors, and then the federal candidates put their two cents out for the public to see.

Paxton Simmons had been attending the monthly City Council meeting ever since he moved to the city three years before. He believed in trying to keep the Council accountable for the things they did and didn’t do.

At the beginning of the monthly open Q&A forum, Simmons stepped up to the microphone, introduced himself to the Council – though he was a regular fixture at the meetings and spoke up at least two or three times a year – and stated his concerns.

“Honorable council members, citizens of the city of Abbington, it’s election time. And with that comes the hundreds if not thousands of hideous signs that spring up in empty lots across the city. I would like you to introduce a new ordinance for Abbington that requires the winners of local elections to be in charge of cleaning up all the campaign signs for all the campaigns in the area. Requiring a losing candidate to clean up just puts salt in the wound of a loss, but the winners? They have the momentum and team on their side to make it all happen. Too often, the signs are still up a month after the elections, and quite frankly, they’re an eyesore before the election and doubly so after the folks are already elected and about to be seated. That’s all I have to say on the matter. Thank you for listening to my request.”

“Mr. Simmons, we appreciate you taking the time to express your concerns with this body,” Mayor Tinley said. “This is the first I’ve heard of the signage being a public nuisance or an eyesore as you put it. We will take it under advisement and consider ways to reduce the burden on the public.”

Simmons took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. He knew what that terminology meant because he had heard it many times before when an independent citizen brought issues to the attention of the City Council: “go pound sand. We’ll take the signs down when we’re good and ready.”

But now his two cents were in the official records for the City. The likelihood the politicians would self-police their own signage was better than even odds now that they knew at least one person was watching.

*******


Subscribe to Three Minute Fiction

By David W. Miller · Launched 3 years ago
Get clean short stories delivered to your inbox. Daily
David W. Miller's avatar
1 Like
1

Share this post

Three Minute Fiction
Three Minute Fiction
The Campaign Signs
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
Share

Discussion about this post

User's avatar
The Gift of Ice Cream
It probably wasn't about the ice cream.
Oct 19, 2022 • 
David W. Miller
6

Share this post

Three Minute Fiction
Three Minute Fiction
The Gift of Ice Cream
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
5
The Alligator
Short Story Day 19 of 365
Jan 19, 2022 • 
David W. Miller
5

Share this post

Three Minute Fiction
Three Minute Fiction
The Alligator
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
1
The Hammocks
Another day in the life....
Jan 21, 2023 • 
David W. Miller
5

Share this post

Three Minute Fiction
Three Minute Fiction
The Hammocks
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
4

Ready for more?

© 2025 David W. Miller
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share

Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More

Create your profile

User's avatar

Only paid subscribers can comment on this post

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in

Check your email

For your security, we need to re-authenticate you.

Click the link we sent to , or click here to sign in.