COUNCILS across South Australia will today tell candidates who have already put up electioneering signs to take them down within 24 hours.

The Local Government Association has emailed all councils in the state advising them that the signs are not allowed on council sign poles or Stobie poles until next Monday, May 16, when Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull yesterday announced that writs would be issued.

The writs are the official declaration of an election.

media_camera Not so fast ... Mark Ward will have to take down his poster.

Council bylaws in SA only allow election signs to go up once writs are issued.

“We’re advising councils to start proceedings to remove the signs,” a LGA spokesman said.

Candidates will have 24 hours to take down their signs, after which the council can taken them down itself.

Depending on the council, candidates who fail to comply can be fined.

West Torrens Council will give candidates in its area until 5pm on Wednesday to remove any signs.

Mayor John Trainer said staff would remove them after that.

“We want to operate in a law-abiding society but there’s a limit to how much we can divert our resources at ratepayers’ expense in this unique situation,” Mr Trainer, a former Labor MP, said.

Charles Sturt Council chief executive Paul Sutton said council officers would begin removing the signs if they were not taken down by Tuesday afternoon.

Councils cannot charge for their staff time to remove the signs and have to return the signs to their owners if asked.

Both major parties started putting up their corflutes on Saturday, sparking independent Nick Xenophon to have some fun on social media, accusing them on Twitter of “premature erection”.

Signs for Sturt Xenophon candidate Matthew Wright were put up by a volunteer on Sunday afternoon but were later taken down.