There are just a few weeks until Election Day, and the South Dakota campaign is heating up. The opponents are doing everything they can to defeat marijuana reform. They’re resorting to scare tactics and lies, making false claims about Colorado, and being dishonest about the details of Amendment A (the legalization initiative).

The good news is, the 2020 campaign -- South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws -- is fighting back. They sent a mailer to tens of thousands of voters across the state. They’re running TV and digital ads that explain the benefits of Amendment A (which legalizes marijuana for adults 21 and over and protects medical marijuana access) and Measure 26 (the medical marijuana initiative). They have some great Facebook videos from supporters (including popular travel writer and public TV host Rick Steves) that they’re sharing with voters across the state. They’re getting their message out through the media, making the case for legal access to medical marijuana and pushing back on the opponents' false claims.  

And last week they organized an awesome day of action across the state!

The campaign is working very hard, and they’re still on a path to victory.

But in past campaigns in other states, anti-reform forces have spent big money in the final weeks before Election Day. So we can’t take anything for granted in South Dakota.

Here’s how you can help:

1. If you know someone in South Dakota, tell them to double check that they are registered to vote! The deadline is October 19. If they have questions, they should visit SouthDakota2020.org/vote or contact the campaign on Facebook. 

2. If you can, please make a donation directly to South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws. Whether it’s $10 or $100, it will really help the campaign.

3. Buy an A+26 t-shirt! Fifteen dollars ($15) from each purchase is donated to the campaign.

MPP staff are playing an important role in this exciting campaign, which will be historic. Until now, no state has approved medical marijuana and legalization for adults on the same ballot. Let’s make sure our friends in South Dakota have all the support they need to achieve victory on Election Day.

Ask Gov. Northam to sign SB 5029 and SB 5013 into law.

During a special legislative session, the Virginia General Assembly approved two important cannabis reform bills. Here’s what the legislation would do:

SB 5029 would prevent law enforcement from using the odor of cannabis as a pretext for searching and seizing property.

SB 5013 would give people issued a summons for cannabis possession the option of pre-paying the civil penalty instead of having to go to court.

The bills now head to Gov. Northam’s desk. Email Gov. Northam today and ask that he sign the bills into law!

The supposed smell of cannabis is perhaps the #1 pretext for police stops. Black individuals are disproportionately stopped and searched, just as they are disproportionately arrested for cannabis. These unnecessary stops are traumatic, demeaning, and can even be deadly. SB 5029 is an important reform that will reduce police-civilian contact over the supposed smell of cannabis.

Meanwhile, SB 5013 will avoid disrupting lives by no longer forcing individuals to miss work or school to go to court for simple possession of cannabis.

After you contact the governor in support of these reforms, please take a minute to also reach out to your lawmakers and ask them to support broader reform — legalizing and regulating cannabis for adults 21 and older.

Together, we can end cannabis prohibition in Virginia!

Look up your state legislative districts and then see where your state House and Senate candidates stand on protecting patients.

South Carolina is one of 26 states that lacks a citizen initiative process. The only road to enacting a compassionate medical cannabis law in the Palmetto State is via the state legislature. While medical cannabis isn’t directly on the ballot, the entire legislature is.

Early and absentee voting have already begun. Now’s the perfect time to get informed about where your candidates stand on medical cannabis.

Our voter guide includes responses to the South Carolina Compassionate Care Alliance’s candidate questionnaire, along with whether incumbents cosponsored medical cannabis bills and incumbents’ past committee votes.

First, look up your state legislative districts here. After you fill in your information, the second section will display your Voting Districts. You’re looking for the number of your SC Senate District and SC House District.

Then, check out our voter guides for South Carolina Senate races and South Carolina House races. (If one or more of your candidates hasn’t responded, ask them if they agree that seriously ill patients should be allowed to use and safely access medical cannabis when it’s recommended by a physician.)

Finally, if you’re a registered South Carolina voter, make a plan to vote. This year, South Carolina is letting all voters vote absentee due to COVID-19 (by selecting “State of Emergency” as the reason).

• In-person absentee voting began today and lasts until 5:00 p.m. Monday, November 2. Locations can be found here. Voters must present a voter ID when voting in person and should wear a mask.
• Voters can also cast an absentee ballot by mail or personal delivery to their county voter registration office. If you choose this approach, first carefully review the requirements on timing and procedure.
• Alternatively, voters can vote at their precinct on Election Day, Tuesday, November 3 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Don’t miss out on this chance to help decide who represents you in Columbia. And please spread the word to other compassionate South Carolinians, so that they, too, can cast informed votes.

Gov. Phil Scott said this week that he remains undecided — please email or call him today!

Yesterday, the bill to legalize and regulate cannabis sales landed on the desk of Gov. Phil Scott. He will have until Wednesday to sign or veto it — if he takes no action, it will become law without his signature.

Please call or email Gov. Scott today and urge him to sign S. 54!

During a debate on Wednesday evening, Gov. Scott made this alarming statement: “In terms of the pot bill, I haven’t made up my mind about that. I have received a lot of groups—racial equity groups—that are asking me to veto it. I was leaning towards letting it go, but I’m really questioning that at this point. I want to hear and listen from them.”

Although we respect the fact that others may disagree, we feel strongly that S. 54 represents an important step forward for racial and social equity. In a recent op-ed, MPP’s executive director Steve Hawkins explained why he views passage of S. 54 — and its companion bill, S. 234 — as “a racial justice imperative.” And in another excellent op-ed, Monica Donovan explained the bill’s equity provisions and warned that, "the insistence on waiting for a perfect bill would simply result in perpetuating this state of pseudo-legalization — and the harm it perpetuates — for at least an extra year."

For more information on the details of S. 54, here is a summary.

We believe it would be a terrible setback if Gov. Scott vetoes this bill, perpetuating the intolerable status quo. Please share this news with your family and friends and urge them to contact the governor.

Find out if your state senate district is on the ballot and where your candidates stand on medical cannabis access.

We were devastated when the Nebraska Supreme Court removed the medical cannabis initiative from November’s ballot in a 5-2 vote.

But we’re not giving up.

While medical cannabis isn’t directly on the November ballot, 25 of the 49 seats in the Nebraska Legislature are. And only legislators will have the power to legalize medical cannabis before November 2022. If you live in an odd numbered state legislative district, your district is on the ballot! (You can look up your state legislative district here.)

Before you cast your vote, check out this voter guide from Nebraska Families 4 Medical Cannabis to see which candidate(s) will stand up for the seriously ill.

Then, if you’re eligible, make a plan to vote. Early voting begins on Monday, October 5 at county elections offices. Nebraska is also a “no excuse” absentee voting state — meaning anyone can request an absentee ballot — and some counties are sending one out to all registered voters. Alternately, voters can cast their ballots at their local polling place on Election Day, Tuesday, November 3.

Please spread the word to other compassionate Nebraskans, so that they, too, can cast informed votes.

And stay tuned for more ways to help move the issue forward. With your help, Nebraska will enact a comprehensive medical cannabis program.

Ask your state lawmakers to support expanding patient access to medical cannabis!

Good news! On Thursday, the New Jersey Assembly and Senate are scheduled to vote on twin bills to allow healthcare practitioners to authorize medical cannabis using telemedicine. The bills — Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt’s A. 1635 and Sen. Declan O’Scanlon’s S. 619 — are particularly important in these times of COVID, when many are concerned about any unnecessary in-person interactions.

Both bills are scheduled for a vote this Thursday, September 24 at 10:30 a.m. Please email your state legislators today to ask them to support A.1635 and S.619. Earlier this year, Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration took crucial steps to preserve safe access to medical cannabis during COVID by issuing a waiver that allowed home delivery of medical cannabis. That waiver implemented one of the key provisions contained in Jake Honig’s Law that was signed into law in 2019 and expanded on measures Gov. Murphy’s administration took at the onset of the pandemic to ensure patient access.

Lastly, as you may know, legalization is on the ballot in New Jersey this November — as Public Question 1. The deadline to register to vote is October 13. New Jersey is mailing all registered voters their ballots. Completed ballots can be deposited in secure drop boxes, mailed in, dropped off at one's county Board of Elections office, or dropped off at one’s polling place on Election Day. For those who prefer to vote in person, polling places will be open on Tuesday, November 3 between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Please spread the word so that others can make their voices heard for sensible and humane cannabis policies!

The bill to legalize retail sales and the bill to automatically expunge records for past offenses are both advancing to the desk of Gov. Phil Scott — please call him today and encourage him to sign them into law!

The bill to legalize, regulate, and tax adult-use cannabis sales cleared its final legislative hurdle this morning when the Senate approved it in a final vote of 23-6. The Senate also granted final approval to the bill that would automatically expunge records for past low-level cannabis offenses, in a voice vote. Both bills will now proceed to the desk of Gov. Phil Scott.

Please take a moment to call Gov. Phil Scott at 802-828-3333 and encourage him to sign both bills when they reach his desk!

If you’d like to learn more about the details of these bills, here is a summary of the bill to legalize and regulate sales (S. 54) and here is a summary of the bill that includes the automatic expungement provisions (S. 234).

The process of reaching a compromise on S. 54 was especially challenging for both legislators and advocates, and we are very grateful to the representatives and senators who worked on this bill for their dedication. Although the final bill is not perfect, it is a very important step forward, and it would be a terrible shame if Gov. Scott decides not to sign it into law.

Again, please call Gov. Scott’s office and encourage him to sign both S. 54 and S. 234. After you do so, please share this message with your family and friends!

The Senate is expected to send S. 54 to the desk of Gov. Phil Scott next week — please call him today and encourage him to sign it!

The bill to legalize, regulate, and tax adult-use cannabis sales cleared yet another hurdle today when the House approved it in a final vote of 92-56. The Senate is expected to pass S. 54 next week, after which it will proceed to the desk of Gov. Phil Scott.

Please take a moment to call Gov. Phil Scott at 802-828-3333 and encourage him to sign it when it reaches his desk.

Here are some key features of the bill:

• Priority licensing for small-scale cultivators (up to 1,000 square feet)
• Priority licensing for women- and minority-owned businesses
• Independent lab testing of all cannabis sold to patients and adult consumers
• Creating a new independent commission to regulate medical and adult-use cannabis
• Requiring a search warrant prior to saliva testing, which could not be conducted roadside

This has been a challenging process for both legislators and advocates, but the bill is now only a couple of steps away from becoming law. It would be a terrible shame to see it fall short of the finish line. Let the governor know it makes no sense to keep sales illicit and unregulated. Consumers deserve safe access to a tested product, and Vermont needs the jobs and tax revenue S. 54 would bring.

Again, please call Gov. Scott’s office and encourage him to sign S. 54. After you do so, please share this message with your family and friends!

Get a T-shirt and support the historic 2020 campaign to reform South Dakota's broken marijuana laws!

This November, South Dakota will be the first state to vote on medical marijuana and adult-use legalization initiatives simultaneously. Amendment A and Measure 26 would work together to establish a medical marijuana program for patients and legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana for adults 21 and over.

Winning in South Dakota will create even more pressure on Congress to pass major federal reform in 2021. So this campaign is important.

Created in partnership with our friends at Kannabis Kings Apparel, the South Dakota T-shirts are available in three different colors and two different logo designs, with short-sleeve and long-sleeve options. Fifteen dollars ($15) from each T-shirt purchase will be donated directly to the South Dakota campaign. (Note: Your contribution will go to South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws and will be included in campaign finance reports just like all donations to ballot initiative campaigns.)

Show your support, grab a piece of marijuana campaign history, and help the campaign win this November by getting your T-shirt today!