Contrary to popular belief, there have only been 3 studies of the impact of lawn signs, and all 3 indicate that lawns signs DO have a positive impact on both turnout and vote share.

In the largest study yet, which just came out this March, lawn signs were responsible for about a 1.7% increase in vote share. A previous study demonstrated that in a low-information local election, they could deliver as much as a 10 point increase in vote share.

This is surprisingly close to the results for canvassing, which are about 1.8% to 2% in vote share and up to 8% in increased turnout.

Lawn signs work in multiple ways:

  1. providing visual cues for word-of-mouth conversations,
  2. creating the appearance of viability and momentum,
  3. increasing name recognition and driving online searches, and
  4. indicating peer-endorsement by neighbors.

In our program, we aggressively recruit supporters to host lawn signs on their properties, focusing on high traffic routes in geographically targeted areas.

Photo by Daniel Case, via Wikimedia Commons. (License: GFDL or CC-BY-SA 3.0.)