North Dakota could become the cannabis bridge between the Midwest and the western United States if voters there decide to pass a newly certified ballot question this November to legalize medical marijuana.
The North Dakota Compassionate Care Act, which is supported by a committee chaired by Ray Morgan, handed in more than 17,600 signatures a month ago to the secretary of state’s office, which declared on Thursday that it had cleared the hurdle of 13,452 to make the ballot.
Its chances, however, may be slim, given that there hasn’t been any recent polling on medical cannabis. In 2014, one study found that only 47% of North Dakota voters favored legalizing MMJ, while 41% were opposed and 9% were undecided.
The North Dakota campaign is the eighth cannabis legalization question to qualify for a statewide ballot this year. The others, which include both medical and recreational, include Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, and Nevada. A ninth, in Montana, would roll back an anti-dispensary law.
