Marijuana Election Results in Four States

Voters in four states had the chance to vote for legalizing either recreational or medical marijuana on Tuesday.
Recreational marijuana was on the ballot in North Dakota, South Dakota and Florida, and medical marijuana was up for a vote in Nebraska.
The only state that ended up passing marijuana legislation last night was Nebraska, which passed both Initiative 437 which will legalize medical use of marijuana, and Initiative 438 which will establish the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission to regulate the state’s medical marijuana program.
The Associated Press has reported, with 99 percent of the vote in, that Initiative 437 passed with 70.7 percent of Nebraskans voting in favor of it, and that Initiative 438 passed with 66.9 percent of the vote.
Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, one of the driving groups behind the two ballot initiatives, posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday morning, writing: “Thank you Nebraska. The patients in our state are looking to a future filled with hope because of you.”
The measure, however, is currently undergoing legal challenges. The Nebraska Examiner reported that District Judge Susan Strong from Nebraska’s Lancaster County District Court is yet to decide on a court case determining the validity of signatures on the petitions provided to put the measures on Nebraska’s ballot.
Medical marijuana is legal in North Dakota, but proponents for Initiated Measure 5, which would “legalize the recreational or personal use of marijuana,” failed to pass their bill.
With 98 percent of the votes in, per CNN, 52.5 percent of North Dakotans voted no and 47.5 percent voted yes on the measure.
South Dakotans did not pass Initiated Measure 29, which would “legalize the recreational or personal use of marijuana.”
With 92 percent of the votes counted, per CNN, 43.7 percent of South Dakotans voted yes on the measure, and 56.3 percent of South Dakotans voted no. Medical marijuana is not legal in the state.
Florida also had legalizing recreational marijuana on their ballot as an amendment. Although 55.9 percent of Floridians voted in favor of the amendment, it did not pass as Florida has a threshold of 60 percent for referendums to pass in the state.
Recreational marijuana is already legal in Massachusetts, but voters had the chance yesterday to vote on Ballot Question 4, which would “authorize individuals 21 years of age or older to grow, possess, and use a personal amount of psychedelic substances.”
This ballot question failed, with 56.9 percent of people voting against it at the polls.
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