South Dakota voters will once again get the chance to weigh in on legalizing recreational marijuana with the approval of a ballot measure to legalize weed for the November election. Secretary of State Monae Johnson announced on Monday that 22,558 valid signatures had been collected from registered by the legalization campaign, approximately 5,000 signatures more than the number need to qualify the measure for the ballot for this fall’s election.
“Qualifying for the ballot is an enormous accomplishment and one worth celebrating. But we need to get right back to work—Election Day is just five months away,” Matthew Schweich, executive director of legalization campaign, said in an email to supporters cited by Marijuana Moment. “Let’s take the energy and momentum from our successful signature drive and channel it towards a victory this fall!”
Illustration showing “now entering South Dakota” highway sign with marijuana leaf.
An initiative to legalize recreational marijuana in South Dakota will appear on the ballot for this
The initiative will appear on the general election ballot as Measure 29. The development will mark the third time in five years that South Dakota voters have gone to the polls to decide on legalizing recreational cannabis for adults. In 2020, South Dakota approved a recreational marijuana legalization initiative, but the law was struck down by the state Supreme Court after a legal challenge led by Republican Gov. Kristi Noem. Two years later another initiative made the ballot for the 2022 election, but the measure was rejected by nearly 53% of the state’s voters.
Ballot Measure Legalizes Marijuana For Adults
The initiative that will appear on the ballot in South Dakota this year would legalize the possession and purchase of up to two ounces of marijuana by adults aged 21 and older. The measure, which is backed by the group South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws (SDBML), also allows adults to grow up to six cannabis plants at home, with a cap of 12 plants for households with more than one adult. If the measure is approved by voters at the ballot box this November, backers of the initiative say they will work with state lawmakers to draft regulations for the commercial production and sale of recreational cannabis.
“We firmly believe that South Dakotans deserve to make their own choices on how they live their lives, including the freedom to responsibly use cannabis,” Zebadiah Johnson, political director for the campaign to legalize recreational marijuana, said in a statement to the Associated Press.
The initiative to legalize recreational marijuana is opposed by the group Protecting South Dakota Kids. Jim Kinyon, chairperson of the group, said that the state’s voters already decided on the issue in 2022 and criticized the new attempt to end the prohibition on weed in South Dakota.
H/T: www.forbes.com
