Jackson, MS: More than eight in ten Mississippi voters endorse medical marijuana legalization, and most prefer the more liberal of the state’s two pending ballot measures.
According to polling data released on Wednesday, 81 percent of respondents – including 89 percent of Democrats and 76 percent of Republicans – favor “allowing patients with medical conditions and serious illnesses to possess and consume marijuana if their doctors recommend it.”
Mississippi voters this fall will decide on a pair of competing ballot measures: Initiative 65 and Alternative 65A. The first measure was placed on the ballot at the behest of voters while the latter is a more restrictive proposal advanced by the legislature.
When provided information about both measures, 63 percent of respondents endorsed Initiative 65 while only 18 percent preferred Alternative 65A, according to the poll.
Voters in South Dakota will also be deciding on a medicalization initiative in November. In Nebraska, the Secretary of State’s Office has certified that initiative proponents gathered ample signatures to qualify a medical marijuana legalization measure for the ballot, but a newly filed legal challenge remains outstanding. Adult-use ballot initiatives have qualified for the ballots in New Jersey, Arizona, Montana, and South Dakota.
More information on the Initiative 65 campaign is available online. Additional information on 2020 ballot initiatives is available from NORML Election Central.