Small Minnesota town frustrated over stolen campaign signs

ARLINGTON, Minn. — Election season is heating up, but people in a rural Minnesota town feel things are going too far.

At least three people in Arlington, about an hour southwest of Minneapolis, have had their campaign yard signs stolen recently, including Tony Nerud.

“It’s just frustrating to think that we’re not able to have even the kind of polite discourse over signs,” he said.

Arlington’s chief of police, Glenn Gerads, says it’s happened to signs of both political parties.

“It is a crime in the state of Minnesota,” he said. “We do not want any of this to happen.”

Nerud supports a different party than his nearby neighbor, Darin Haslip, but they agree that political differences don’t justify theft or vandalism.

“If we’re just going to sit on each side of this fence and throw rocks at each other, then everyone’s going to get hurt,” Haslip said. “We need to get to a point where we need to talk.”

“I think it’s important that people share and be able to communicate their differences,” Nerud said.

Gerads is also frustrated with the thefts.

“We just want people to remain civil during the election process,” he said. “Use your opinion at the ballot box. That’s where you can use your opinion the most.”

Nerud’s decided to put up cameras.

“I’m a little concerned [my signs will] be defaced, but it’ll stay, and if it is defaced, we’ll replace it,” he said.

Haslip believes things have gone too far if there’s a need for cameras.

“If it’s gotten to that point, I think we need to back things up, stop the train,” he said. “Let’s figure this out, guys. There’s no reason for this.”