Summary: Voters in Oregon, Alaska and the District of Columbia all voted to legalize various marijuana legislation as Florida voted down medical marijuana.
Following the mid-term election on Tuesday, voters in Oregon and Alaska have approved pro-marijuana legislation, according to CNN and The Verge. Voters in Washington, D.C. have also approved pro-marijuana legislation.
The three wins are huge for pro-marijuana activists, who are now getting even more excited for the election in 2016. On the ballot in 2016 will be pro-marijuana legislation in five states; Maine, Massachusetts, California, Nevada and Arizona.
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Personal possession, sales and manufacturing marijuana have all been legalized with the vote in Oregon for those 21 years or older. The law in this state will create a commercial regulatory system for all aspects of the drug.
Alaska’s law is also for people 21 years or older and will regulate and tax the production, sale and use of the drug.
The law in Washington, D.C. allows persons over the age of 21 to possess two ounces of marijuana for personal use. It also allows them to grow six plants at home. The transfer of one ounce of marijuana is permitted with this law, but not the sale of the drug.
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The battle is not over in the District of Columbia though, because lawmakers can overrule laws for the district since it is not a state. Some lawmakers have said they would overrule the legislation should voters approve it.
“It’s always an uphill battle to win a marijuana legalization initiative in a year like this, when young people are so much less likely to vote, which makes today’s victory all the sweeter,” said Ethan Nadelmann, executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, about the state of Oregon. “The pace of reform is accelerating, other states are sure to follow, and even Congress is poised to wake from its slumber.”
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Tom Angell, the chairman of Marijuana Majority, said, “With marijuana legal in the federal government’s backyard, it’s going to be increasingly difficult for national politicians to continue ignoring the growing majority of voters who want to end prohibition.”
The state of Florida saw its voters reject medical marijuana legislation. The legislation needed 60 percent of the vote to pass, but it garnered only 57 percent.
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Image credit: AP