FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) – Cannabis activists in the state of North Dakota are making progress yet again in their fight to legalize the drug. They are hoping the third time is the charm, after two previous failures.
Marijuana legalization initiatives have made it to the North Dakota ballot in both the 2018 and 2022 elections. They’ve come up short on both occasions, but it does appear that the idea gains a little more traction each time.
In 2018, Measure 3 was shot down by a 59-to-41 percent margin. One of the more controversial aspects of that bill was an automatic expungement system, which meant if you had a prior conviction for weed, Measure 3 would have wiped that out.
The expungement provision was dropped by 2022, but Measure 2 only managed to get 45% of the vote that time around.
Now, the New Economic Frontier has received permission from the Secretary of State to try again in 2024.
The primary alteration from previous measures comes in the category of home cultivation. There is now a cap on the number of plants one household can legally grow. Otherwise, it appears the New Economic Frontier is hoping that changing attitudes towards marijuana usage will get them over the line this time around.
Of course, this measure has to make it on the ballot first. The petition needs 15,582 signatures by July 8 to qualify for the November general election. If that deadline is missed, proponents will have to hope for 2026 instead.
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