Mississippi voters say yes to medical cannabis legalization

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Mississippi on Tuesday became the latest state to legalize medical cannabis during the 2020 election, following in the footsteps of South Dakota.

Voters gave an enthusiastic thumbs-up to a pair of pro-medical marijuana ballot measures:

  • The first asked if they wanted to legalize MMJ.
  • The second provided a business-friendly industry framework that has no limit on the number of licenses.

Voters gave thumbs-down to a more restrictive measure written by state lawmakers that was also on the ballot.

The New York Times called the vote.

The first question, Measure 1A, got 68% approval, and the second, Initiative 65, got a whopping 74% of the vote from those who backed 1A, as of 1 a.m. EST Wednesday.

The Marijuana Policy Project celebrated yet another win on Election Day on the heels of legalization victories in New Jersey, Arizona and South Dakota.

The MPP also reiterated that the win proves once more that cannabis reform is neither a Democratic nor Republican issue. (A separate adult-use initiative was leading in South Dakota.)

“As we saw in Utah in 2018, and as we see in Mississippi this year, medical marijuana can pass in any state in the country,” MPP Executive Director Steve Hawkins said in a statement.

Mississippi joins fellow southern states Louisiana, Arkansas and Florida with medical marijuana programs.