Mayo General Election candidates asked not to erect posters around Castlebar

A MAYO Tidy Towns committee has asked General Election candidates to refrain from erecting election posters on poles during the election campaign.

Castlebar Town Council posted a message on its Facebook page this afternoon calling on all candidates to respect requests not to put up posters in the county town.

“In solidarity with towns and villages across our county and country, Castlebar Tidy Towns respectfully requests that all candidates in the upcoming General Election refrain from placing election pole posters within Castlebar's 50km limit.

“Castlebar has worked hard over the years to remain pole poster-free, and we hope to maintain this tradition for the upcoming election,” the post read before wishing all the candidates in the election the best of luck.

Erecting posters of election candidates on poles and lampposts has been a mainstay of electioneering in Ireland for decades but in recent years there has been calls for them to be scrapped.

Fine Gael councillor Ger Deere who is also a member of Castlebar Tidy Towns made a similar request to candidates ahead of the local elections in June. He said that not only are the posters unsightly but they are also a health and safety hazard and in the age of social media he believes there is no advantage in having them to get elected.

Election posters have not been seen in Westport town for a number of years after local candidates agreed to end the practice.

Last May there was anger among the Westport public when election posters belonging to European election candidates including Fine Gael MEP Maria Walsh and Fianna Fáil Senator Lisa Chambers were erected on poles around the town.