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KIRKSVILLE, MO. -- It seems candidates in the race for Adair County Sheriff are having issues with their campaign signs disappearing, being vandalized or both.

Republican candidate Jason Lene told KTVO someone vandalized three or four of his signs.

In addition to one that was spray-painted in Kirksville, another sign was shot at and another one run over.

He said 30 to 40 of his small campaign signs have come up missing.

Most of them have been in the City of Kirksville, but a few have been out in the county.

Lene said candidates spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on all of their signs, and it's aggravating when things like this happen.

"To whoever's doing this, I wish they would stop, of course,” said Lene. “All of us candidates are out here doing the same thing, trying to get elected, and that's our form of advertisement, and it just affects the campaign."

Lene added that he does not condone any negative behavior from his supporters toward other candidates.

Larry Logston, Democratic candidate for Adair County Sheriff, told KTVO he has had about a dozen of his campaign signs come up missing.

Current Republican Sheriff Robert Hardwick said he has some missing, too.

While we're on the topic of the race for sheriff, one of our Facebook fans wanted us to explain the primary election process.

Here is how it works: on August 7, the names of Robert Hardwick and Jason Lene will appear on the Adair County Republican ticket.

To vote for one of them, you will have to ask for a Republican ballot at the polls.

The winner of that race will then face off against Democrat Larry Logston, the only Democratic candidate for Adair County sheriff, in November.

The winner of the November election will then become Adair County sheriff on January 1, 2013.