Election advertising
Special use of public land
For advertising on public streets and squares on the occasion of general elections and votes, permission is generally required from the City of Hof. Below you will find all the information on applying for and using election advertising in the city of Hof.
General information
Special use refers to all uses of public land (roads, squares, etc.) that go beyond the usual use (so-called common use).
Example:
- Walking on a road or riding a bicycle/car is considered public use
- Setting up tables and chairs on the sidewalk in front of a restaurant constitutes special use
A special use can only exist on public land. Private property (e.g. private parking lots, company premises, own land) is not affected by this, as only the owner can decide here.
The legal basis for special use can be found in Art. 18 of the Bavarian Road and Highway Act (BayStrWG) as well as the special use statutes and the special use fee statutes of the City of Hof.
For election advertising, the announcement of the Bavarian State Ministry of the Interior regarding election advertising (Ref. IC2-2116.1-0) must also be observed.
All advertising opportunities that are used on public land are considered special use. This includes, among other things
- Advertising with posters on lamp posts
- Placing of construction fence banners and large posters (e.g. "Wesselmänner") in the roadside greenery
- Setting up information stands (e.g. in the pedestrian zone or other public places)
The application for election advertising can be submitted in writing (also by e-mail) to the City of Hof. A special form is not required.
The application must include at least one postal address to enable the notices to be sent. The other data required for the individual types of election advertising can be found in the following points.
The application must be submitted in good time before the above-mentioned application deadline.
If an application is not submitted in good time before the application deadline, it will only be taken into account to a limited extent when allocating the election advertising.
Only the minimum quantities prescribed in principle will be permitted. These applications are also given lower priority when allocating locations.
No costs are charged for the permission of election advertising.
Election posters may only be put up in the city of Hof from four weeks before the election date. The exact date will be announced above.
Information stands are permitted as election advertising from six weeks before the election date.
Election advertising must be removed immediately after the election, but no later than one week after the election date.
Election posters
A total quota of 500 poster sites is made available in the city of Hof.
Each applicant party receives a basic amount of 25 locations from this quota. The remaining amount is distributed among the applying parties on a percentage basis in accordance with the principle of "graduated equality of opportunity", taking into account the result of the last election of the same name (e.g. in the case of federal elections, the result of the previous federal election). A party can receive a maximum of 125 poster sites.
A distinction is made between small posters (up to DIN A0) and large post ers. One large poster is counted as three small posters.
Regulations for small posters:
Small posters may be hung on all free lampposts in the entire city area, provided that this does not interfere with road traffic or the installation has been explicitly prohibited in the following point. A double-sided version of the posters is possible at any time.
Placement is not permitted if
- there are traffic lights or traffic signs on the pole or
- the poster obstructs the view at traffic lights or traffic signs behind it.
It is also prohibited to place posters in the following restricted areas:
- In the city center in the Altstadt and Neustadt areas (pedestrian zone Altstadt and Ludwigstr. incl. the adjacent cross streets; see picture)
- At the Ernst-Reuter-Str. / Parsevalstr. junction, no posters may be put up on the middle lane divider due to the poor visibility (see picture).
The posters themselves must be made of weather-resistant material (e.g. hollow chamber posters). Simple paper posters or cardboard are not permitted, as they disintegrate in bad weather and pose a safety hazard.
They should always be fastened with plastic cable ties, the fasteners have also to be weatherproof.
The materials must be selected in such a way that the poles are not damaged and no safety hazards arise.
Seal labels corresponding to the number of permitted poster locations are enclosed with the permit for small posters and must be affixed to the posters. One seal is required per location; on double-sided posters, only one side is to be labeled. The seal label must be positioned in such a way that it is clearly visible to the control personnel (always top left on the poster, recognizable on roads from the direction of travel; see image).
The seal labels simplify the inspection of election posters. The numbered seals also make it easier for the parties to keep track of their own locations.
If it becomes necessary to reprint a seal, this can be done at any time. For this, a visit to the city of Hof is necessary.
If the seal is still recognizable, it must be brought along and handed in.
If the seal has been completely destroyed or the poster has disappeared altogether, the number noted on the seal must be quoted for the reprint.
If the seal cannot be presented and the seal number is not known, reprinting is unfortunately not possible
We recommend documenting the locations of the posters together with the seal numbers so that the seal number can be quoted if necessary.
Regulations for large posters
The application for the installation of large billboards must include:
- the desired installation locations, with precise location details and, ideally, marking on an aerial photograph (e.g. Google Maps) and
- the dimensions of the large billboard including attachments (length, width, height)
In contrast to the small posters, fixed locations in the city area must be requested for the large posters. These are allocated by the City of Hof and permitted accordingly.
In principle, all locations can be specified as long as they do not interfere with road traffic.
Below you will find a list of the most frequently used locations:
- Ascher Str. (near the sports field)
- Crossroads Eppenreuther Str. / Richard-Wagner-Str.
- Ernst-Reuter-Str. (at the level of the Burger King branch)
- Crossroads Ernst-Reuter-Str. / Kornhausacker
- Kulmbacher Str. (at the level of the McDonald's branch)
- Kurt-Schumacher-Platz
- Crossing Oelsnitzer Str. / Wartturmweg)
- Junction Schützenstr. / Schützenweg
(The list is not exhaustive.)
The locations can be freely requested by the parties. If several parties apply for the same location and the location allows it, several places will be offered and the parties will be considered accordingly.
If there is not enough space at the respective location to allow all parties to set up, the allocation is made according to the date of application (earlier applications are considered first).
If a location cannot be used, an alternative solution (e.g. alternative location) will be sought with the party concerned.
Information stands
The application to set up an information stand must include:
- the desired location,
- the desired installation dates and
- the required stand space (length x width)
Information stands can be approved in all public places, provided that they do not interfere with road traffic.
If several parties apply for the same location, it will be allocated according to the date of application (earlier applications will be considered first). If a location cannot be allocated or has already been allocated, an alternative solution (e.g. alternative location) will be sought with the party concerned.
An information stand serves to provide information about the party's current campaigns, which is why all commercial purposes (e.g. sales) are prohibited.
In addition, the use of loudspeakers (both for music and for speeches) at the stand is prohibited.
If information stands are permitted in the pedestrian zone, a vehicle may be driven up to the stand location to set up and dismantle the stand. During the operation of the information stand, the vehicle must be removed from the stand location.
