Political candidates and supporters in Lander, Wyoming, were voicing confusion Tuesday after a rash of political yard sign thefts in town.
And whoever is taking the signs doesn’t seem to have a political agenda, as signs for Republicans and Democrats were apparently targeted.
The Lander Police Department said in a Tuesday Facebook post that the issue “has been taken care of from our end,” but didn’t immediately respond to multiple Cowboy State Daily requests to clarify what that means or for more information on the political sign thefts.
“I don’t know that it’s 100% resolved,” Carol Smith, director of political action group Lander Schools for the Future, told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday. “Some of the signs were found in a big pile, I believe they told us this morning, somewhere around 7th and Cascade (streets).”
The pile was in the middle of the street, but Smith said she didn’t know if the alleged thief put the yard signs there or the authorities did, she said.
Smith also believes the alleged thefts targeted candidates on both sides of the political aisle, including all six candidates for the Fremont County District No. 1 School Board. Smith’s PAC supports three of those candidates: Buck Tilton, Mara Gans and Daniel McLane.
Also running are incumbents Scott Jensen and Taylor Jacobs, and candidate Virginia Arbery.
“I think it’s sad for our community that people have chosen to vandalize when it comes to something like this,” said Smith. “These candidates have worked and continued to work on both sides … to let people know what they believe and how passionate they are about whatever office their running for.”
The cost of the signs range from $5 to $13 each depending on when and where they’re bought, which amounts to hundreds of dollars for a PAC backing three candidates, said Smith.
If the culprit is a kid, it’s not funny; if it’s an adult, “then really, shame on them,” said Smith.
Pro-Life
Lander resident Sara Cooper told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday that someone stole a pro-life sign from her yard about a month ago. It said “Pro-Life, voice for the voiceless,” she said, adding, “It had a picture of a cute little baby that looks like my baby.”
Cooper was among several Lander locals who took to social media to condemn the thefts this week.
Next time it happens, she’s raising a sign promising to donate money for every sign stolen, Cooper wrote in a post Tuesday morning.
Families for Fremont 1, which supports Jensen, Jacobs and Arbery, told victims of sign thefts to notify the group so it could get replacements to them.
‘So Aggressively’
Perhaps the most outspoken about the thefts was Lander City Council Ward 1 candidate Jenny Young, who wrote on social media that one of her signs “was taken so aggressively that only remnants were left behind.”
Young did not respond by publication time to a Cowboy State Daily voicemail seeking additional comment.
Early Tuesday afternoon, she authored a post saying she was impressed with the speed with which her signs were recovered.
“I know part of it was them being dumped in the road, but still,” said Young. “I am just truly glad that a huge chunk were recovered and greatly appreciate the Lander Police Department for holding onto them for us all to reclaim.”
While some sources said they saw a sign for Lander City Council Ward 2 candidate Zach Mahlum in the heap, Mahlum said Tuesday afternoon was the first he’d heard of the incident in an interview with Cowboy State Daily.
“Now that you mention this, I’ll have to go out and look for them,” said Mahlum, adding he felt badly for Young. “That’s a real bummer.”
Not The First Rodeo
Lander Police Department had a case of political sign theft in July as well, ahead of the Aug. 20 primary election.
A 73-year-old man who has since asked to plead guilty for the act was stealing Lander Republican incumbent Rep. Lloyd Larsen’s yard signs, according to court documents and a police report from the incident.
An officer was dispatched to a Lander address the morning of July 25, where some homeowners had caught the older man stealing their Lloyd Larsen yard signs after several of them had been going missing for days.
Larsen also arrived on scene and asked the man why he was stealing the signs, and the man reportedly said he was displeased with Larsen’s voting record. But he later changed his explanation and told police he has dementia, and it makes him act in unpredictable ways.
Update - Lander Police Department Chief Scott Peters sent a post-publication comment to Cowboy State Daily, concluding that the sign thieves were likely kids.
He said the signs “were left piled in the street and we picked them up Saturday night. We brought them back to the police department and have been returning them to the candidates and causes.”
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
