Americans are rushing to the polls across the country today to raise their hands for Donald Trump (a piece of fascist who wants to do bad things) or Kamala Harris (a moderate Democrat who wants to do good things). But the presidency is not the only thing on the ballot. Voters will be deciding local races and local issues, including everything from abortion rights to property taxes. And voters in four states will decide the fate of weed legalization, with one more state even voting on the legalization of psychedelics.
Recreational cannabis is legal in 24 states, while 38 states allow medical use. And it’s impossible to overstate how big the change is from 20 years ago. Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize weed in 2012 and new states have been added since then, despite still not being legal at the federal level.
Kamala Harris has promised to legalize marijuana at the federal level if she is elected president. Meanwhile, Trump promised to put Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to handle all health matters FDA and USDA. You may remember being the guy who wants to ban junk food like Doritos. It seems like the obvious choice for the stoners, America.
In Florida
Voters in Florida will consider Amendment 3 today, which would legalize marijuana for recreational use by anyone 21 and older. The measure would allow people to possess three ounces of marijuana or five ounces of marijuana concentrate. The measure needs 60% votes to be approved and recent polls are encouraging, with 60% in favor, 34% opposed, and 6% undecided.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, a notorious dipshit who supports Trump, opposes the 3rd amendment and has done a lot of campaigning to oppose legalization. DeSantis was in Orlando and Miami on Monday to present his case, trying to scare anyone around him using a variety of different angles.
“If you’re not 100% sure this is a good idea, you should vote no,” DeSantis said, according to local TV news station WFLA.
DeSantis also tried to insist that the measure would help the weed business, falsely saying that the measure would be good for established companies and prevent domestic marijuana.
“They don’t give you the right to grow your own marijuana on your property,” DeSantis said. “That’s because they’re trying to do business with them.”
It’s a ridiculous argument from a “business person”, yes. But it’s not really about homegrown weed or anything else that makes sense or sense, obviously. Guys like DeSantis want recreational weed to stay illegal because the war on drugs is a war on poor people and ethnic minorities. Rich Floridians don’t have honest lawyers who don’t go to jail if they’re caught with marijuana. That’s for the people DeSantis hates the most.
The latest polling from 538 Florida precincts has Trump ahead by 6.6 points over Harris.
Massachusetts
Both recreational and medical marijuana are legal in Massachusetts, but the Bay State would become the third state in the country to legalize certain psychedelic drugs, following the lead of Oregon and Colorado. Known as Question 4, the ballot measure would authorize substances such as psilocybin mushrooms from licensed sellers.
The five drugs can be legal dimethyltryptamine (DMT), mescaline, ibogaine, psilocybin, and psilocybin, as long as they are obtained from medical facilities for people 21 and older. Stores that sell these drugs will still be illegal, but the bill will also legalize the possession of these five drugs for personal use.
Recent polls show voters in Massachusetts evenly split on Question 4, with 43 percent opposed and 43 percent in favor, according to a recent poll by the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and WCVB. 14% of people who are undecided about the question are likely to decide how it goes.
“This poll question enjoys great support among a small number of political parties in the state including young people, Democrats, liberals and Biden voters,” said Tatishe Nteta, director of the poll, in a statement published online.
“Older voters, independents, Republicans and parents are strongly opposed to this ballot question, and given the high number of parties in particular, this does not bode well for those who want to make Massachusetts the third state in the nation to do these things. according to the law,” said Nteta.
The latest poll from 538 Massachusetts states has Harris ahead of Trump by 26.2 points.
Nebraska
The good people of Nebraska will vote on two measures regarding cannabis today. Ballot Initiative 437 would allow health care professionals to prescribe weed to patients while legalizing the possession and use of marijuana for those residents. And Ballot Initiative 438 would create the Nebraska Medical Commission to regulate the sale and distribution of the drug.
What does it look like in the Cornhusker State? According to a recent survey from Midwest Newsroom Emerson College, 59% say they will vote yes, while 33% say they will vote no, and 8% are unsure, Nebraska Public Media reports.
The lawsuit sought to throw out all of the votes, arguing that there was some form of fraud that occurred during the signature collection process that allowed the marijuana measures to enter the ballot. But the judge recently ruled that the votes will be counted. The final decision on this case is not expected for about two weeks, which means that even if these plans pass, they can still be revised, but at least people will express their opinion on this issue. In the meantime.
The latest polling average from 538 Nebraskans has Trump ahead by 16.4 points over Harris.
North Dakota
As one of the most politically violent states in the country, it is not surprising that it has not yet legalized marijuana for recreational use, although it has been legal for medical purposes since 2016. Ballot measures to legalize recreational use failed in 2018 and 2022, but advocates are trying again this year.
North Dakota’s Initiated Measure 5 is on the ballot and would authorize the recreational use and possession of any residents 21 years of age and older. If it passes, adults will be allowed to possess one ounce of marijuana, four grams of concentrate, and 1,500 milligrams of edibles.
How will this proposed change go this time? Recent polls show 45% legal support, 40% opposed, and 15% undecided, according to the North Dakota Monitor, noting that the measure is supported by an organization called the New Economic Frontier, which tries to promote legalization as a good thing for the growth of business capital. and tax. But legalization has strong opposition from major conservative organizations such as the North Dakota Medical and Hospital Associations, North Dakota Peace Officers, Chiefs of Police Association of North Dakota, and North Dakota Sheriffs and Deputies Associations.
FiveThirtyEight does not have North Dakota polling averages but the latest exit polls have Trump leading by 27 points over Harris.
South Dakota
South Dakota’s Initiated Measure 29 will be decided by voters on Tuesday, which would legalize the use of recreational weed for anyone 21 and older, although it does not legally authorize the sale of weed and has a special carve-out that allows employers to prohibit the use of their employees. Medical cannabis is already legal in the state.
But recent polls don’t look good for people who would like to see recreational marijuana legalized in South Dakota. A disappointing 50% of voters in the state oppose the measure, while 45% support it, according to a poll by Emerson College Polling/KELO-TV/The Hill.
FiveThirtyEight doesn’t have South Dakota polling averages but the latest exit polls have Trump leading by 28 points over Harris.
No one knows for sure what will happen on Tuesday, both in the presidency and in these weed legislation measures. But if all four states that legalize weed today vote to legalize it in some way, there will be 8 of the 50 states where marijuana is completely illegal. And any four official states will bring the number of states used for recreation up to a full half of the country, by 25.
If you haven’t voted today, wherever you are in the US, be sure to do so. This is important, to say the least.
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