Have candidates learned their lesson?

From City Hall:

The airwaves are flooded with advertisements, but there are not many signs of this year’s elections underway on the streets of New York City—literally.

In the scheme of things, stapling signs around lampposts or taping them to streetboxes may not seem like that big of a deal, but it is illegal, and just like parking violations, something the city government appears to be cracking down on harder in dealing with the recession.

In 2009, the Department of Sanitation issued 76,955 illegal posting violations—almost twice as high as in previous years, according to Sanitation spokesperson Kathy Dawkins. Dawkins acknowledged last year’s elections were responsible for the increase in citations. This year, the number of violations is on track to exceed those in years 2007 and 2008, but might not reach the number posted last year. Campaigns appear to stopping themselves short.

Adriano Espaillat, who won the primary for Eric Schneiderman’s Senate Seat in Manhattan and the Bronx, spent part of his primary night hurrying volunteers to collect signs off the street as he canvassed the last few corners.

He had noticed fewer signs this year than in the past, he said.