Voters in South Dakota will decide this year whether to legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older.
Voters also will decide in November the fate of a measure to allow medical marijuana for patients with serious health conditions
South Dakota will become the first state to vote on both medical marijuana and adult-use legalization initiatives on the same ballot, according to Matthew Schweich, deputy director for the Marijuana Policy Project.
In 2018, supporters of legalizing medical marijuana in the state failed to get enough signatures on a petition to get the measure in front of voters.
South Dakota Secretary of State Steve Barnett said his office validated a petition for a proposed constitutional amendment that would legalize, regulate and tax recreational marijuana for adults.
The measure also requires the state Legislature to enact a hemp cultivation law.
South Dakota lawmakers passed a bill in 2019 to legalize industrial hemp, but Republican Gov. Kristi Noem, who strongly opposes cannabis legalization, vetoed the measure.
– Associated Press
