Editorial: Billboards signs of the past?

Local body election hoardings in the Hastings district have replaced the just gone general election billboards. Photo File

Opinion

As can be seen (we have little choice) local-body hopefuls are on the Hastings hustings.

General election billboards across the district have made way for hoardings from those bidding for a Hastings District Council seat and/or mayoralty.

Call me cynical, but as the years wind on it's getting harder to view these exercises in psychogeography as anything other than patronising.

Not only are we expected to make a decision based on a soundbite and smile, but many candidates now include a picture of a tick in case you're pondering what symbol to draw in the box.

Voters aren't too sharp, apparently.

Many claim whoever wins the billboard war wins the election. If so, it's a indictment on our ability to properly gauge aspirants' credentials and make a considered vote.

In an age where we're on the cusp of digital/online voting, it's extraordinary that expensive billboards on stilts (a contemporary of the soapbox) remain the primary, if not sole, campaign medium.

You'd think hoardings (a cousin of the sandwich board) are better suited to the promotion of a school gala or sushi sale.

Still, the fact that there are strict rules as to monies spent, expense declaration, placement and size suggests there's serious advantage to be had.

This antediluvian institution obviously plays an identifiable part in one's success. That remains mysterious and scary. (Those whose signs point to a website for further information do claw back a little faith).

It'd be nice to think a heavily apathetic voting populace would repay the efforts of those who attempt to compel them with a campaign vehicle a little less moth-eaten, and a little more engaging.