Bismarck, ND: State officials this week approved a citizens’ initiative for the November ballot that seeks to legalize the adult-use possession and sale of marijuana in North Dakota.
The proposed ballot measure allows adults to possess, purchase, and home-cultivate specific quantities of cannabis. It also establishes guidelines for the licensing and regulation of commercial cultivators and retailers.
North Dakotans will join voters in several other states who will also be deciding on marijuana legalization proposals this election. Similar adult-use legalization measures have qualified for the ballot in Maryland, Missouri, and South Dakota.
In July, representatives from Oklahomans for Sensible Marijuana Laws turned in over 50,000 more signatures than required to place an adult-use legalization measure on the ballot. Those signatures are still awaiting verification from election officials.
Proponents of an Arkansas initiative to legalize the adult-use marijuana market are engaged in a legal appeal before the Supreme Court after election officials rejected their proposed ballot title. Justices have ruled that the proposal must appear on the election ballot, but they have yet to determine whether the votes will be counted.
Proponents of a Nebraska effort to authorize medical cannabis access are also awaiting verification from election officials.
In addition to these statewide efforts, voters in dozens of cities will be deciding on municipal ballot questions this fall. For instance, voters in five Texas cities – Denton, Elgin, Harker Heights, Killeen, and San Marcos – will decide on measures seeking to amend local laws curtailing police officers’ authority to “issue citations or make arrests for Class A or Class B misdemeanor possession of marijuana offenses” absent a defendant’s alleged involvement in a “felony level narcotics” case. Voters in several Ohio cities will also decide on municipal measures depenalizing activities involving marijuana possession.
In Rhode Island, voters in 31 towns will decide on measures determining whether or not to allow licensed cannabis retailers in their localities. Voters in cities in several other states, including Colorado, Michigan, and Montana, will decide on similar local ballot measures as well.
For a detailed breakdown of 2022 ballot initiatives, please visit NORML’s Election Central.