With the start of early voting just around the corner, the campaign to advance marijuana legalization is moving full steam ahead, and they need your help! First, though, an exciting update! Dakota Rural Action recently announced that they have endorsed both Amendment A and Measure 26. One of their board members, former South Dakota state legislator and Holabird farmer Nick Nemec, gave a stirring endorsement that WNAX radio broadcast across the state! Their endorsement is great news, but the campaign…

Earlier this week, South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws and New Approach South Dakota held a well-attended Zoom media availability conference that lasted for more than an hour. Participants in the call included Brendan Johnson, former U.S. Attorney for South Dakota; Chuck Parkinson, former senior Ronald Reagan and U.S. Senator Jim Abdnor staffer; Melissa Mentele, campaign manager for Initiated Measure 26; and Drey Samuelson, political director of South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws, which…

South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws, the 2020 campaign working to pass two marijuana reform ballot initiatives this November, yesterday announced over 50 endorsements from prominent South Dakotans across the state. The endorsements come from health care professionals, former prosecutors, former elected officials, and business owners, among others. The full list can be viewed here. The campaign also hosted a video press conference yesterday, featuring Brendan Johnson, former United States Attorney…

See below for the first email from South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws, the campaign working to legalize marijuana for adults and establish a medical marijuana program in the state! Click here to sign up for their campaign email alerts. And please consider donating today. This campaign is crucial to our goal of passing landmark federal marijuana reform through Congress. Thanks,  Matthew SchweichDeputy DirectorMarijuana Policy Project  ---------- Forwarded message ---------From: South Dakotans…

Follow and support South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws.This election will matter, and more than most.It’s hard to overstate its importance in any number of areas, and that includes the struggle to end the prohibition of marijuana.There will be marijuana reform campaigns in states across the country including South Dakota, where two initiatives to legalize medical marijuana and adult-use marijuana have qualified for the November ballot. You might be wondering: South Dakota, really? After all,…

Support the 2020 adult-use legalization ballot campaign! It’s not an exaggeration to say that 2020 could be a game-changer for our movement. With voter referendum efforts in several conservative states underway, a serious campaign in South Dakota has already qualified an adult-use legalization initiative for the 2020 ballot, which will appear alongside a separate medical marijuana proposal. MPP staff are playing a central role in guiding the campaign, and we know that with sufficient resources to…

With MPP’s support, South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws has become the first legalization campaign to qualify a citizens’ initiative for the 2020 ballot! The new decade is off to an exciting start for our movement! Earlier this week, South Dakota Secretary of State Steve Barnett announced that the constitutional initiative to legalize and regulate marijuana for adults has succeeded in qualifying for the general election ballot! In an impressive feat, the campaign gathered over 50,000 signatures…

Exciting news! A newly formed political campaign, South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws, has launched an effort to pass two marijuana reform ballot initiatives in South Dakota next year.Yes, you read that right: South Dakota.The first ballot initiative, a proposed constitutional amendment, would legalize and regulate marijuana for adults 21 and older and direct the legislature to enact laws regulating the cultivation and sale of hemp. The second ballot initiative, a proposed statutory amendment,…

If you live in South Dakota, ask your lawmakers to support marijuana decriminalization. The South Dakota Legislature begins its legislative session today. Unfortunately, marijuana policy reform isn’t on the docket. In fact, just like in 2018, there are no marijuana policy reform bills filed in 2019. That’s where you come in — ask your lawmakers today to support the decriminalization of marijuana with our easy-to-use email system. No adults should face jail time for possessing small amounts of…

New Approach South Dakota submitted nearly 15,000 signatures to the Secretary of State with hopes of adding a medical marijuana measure to the 2018 ballot. South Dakota Secretary of State Shantel Krebs said the review of the submitted measure would likely be finished within four months. Her office conducts a random sampling of the signatures to determine validity, with at least 5% of the collected signatures being reviewed. The medical marijuana measure that was submitted for signature validation…