BALDWIN PARK, Fla. — Accusations of voter suppression flew in Baldwin Park after residents received letters in the mail demanding they take down the political signs in their yards.
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However, residents said the letters only targeted signs supporting three candidates challenging incumbents for seats on the community’s HOA board.
“This is just another one of their many, many tactics to kind of try to keep us quiet,” Lindsay Starr accused shortly after she read the letter. Starr had one such sign outside her front door.
The letter warned of “enforcement action” if the signs weren’t removed within a week. Recipients said many signs quickly disappeared. Others were relocated to communal areas.
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Stephen Luther, an attorney by trade, said his sign would stay put.
Luther noted that the letter didn’t cite which rule his sign violated. He supplied a copy of the HOA’s rules, which allow yard-size political signs within 45 days of an election.
He said his sign complied with all requirements because voting for the new HOA board is ongoing. Furthermore, he pointed out his neighbors have had signs outside their homes for months or years and have never been ordered to take them down.
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Luther emailed the property manager and was stunned by the response.
“Per the Association’s legal counsel, these signs are not considered political as they do not pertain to seats in public governmental entities,” Sentry Management’s Erin Gilreath wrote back. “Thank you for removing it with haste.”
When Luther further questioned the response, Gilreath said the HOA qualifies as a corporation and refused to supply the HOA attorney’s name. Gilreath did not respond to questions about why other signs were okay to be left up.
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Gilreath’s response—and the alleged opinion of the HOA attorney—appeared to contradict the community’s plainly written rules, which read: “One (1) sign per candidate… containing political or similar endorsements may be posted on a Unit.”
An independent attorney consulted for this article said in his experience, the words “or similar” are used to specifically include HOA-related matters.
“They have some nerve,” the attorney, who did not agree to his name being included in this article before publication, said.
WFTV contacted Gilreath and the Baldwin Park HOA president with a series of questions and a request for comment. Neither responded.
Luther explained that tensions in Baldwin Park have been high since late 2023 when board members approved a roofing contract many believed was overpriced.
He agreed with others accusing the board of engaging in voter suppression as the incumbents fought to hold off the half-dozen challengers that stepped into the race, including the three on his sign.
“[Voters will] have less information about who to vote for and what’s really going on in this election,” he said. “I don’t think it’s right.”
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