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Dear Stoner: So is that it for statewide marijuana legalization? A few states will usually legalize during a presidential election, but pot didn’t pass anywhere this time.
Nardoozy
Dear Nardoozy: Voters in Florida, North Dakota and South Dakota all rejected recreational cannabis ballot questions (nearly 56 percent of Floridians voted in favor of legalization, but the proposed amendment needed a 60 percent approval rate). Nebraska legalized medical marijuana, at least, so we got one win. Your overall point is correct, though: Cannabis legalization has hit a red wall, and the freedom and liberty sales pitch of legal pot has lost steam with Republicans.
Westword
Save for Hawaii, New Hampshire and a few swing states, all of the states where recreational cannabis is still illegal are conservative, and that doesn’t bode well for the plant. We might see more inroads for medical marijuana and an occasional successful attempt at commercial legalization in Hawaii or Pennsylvania, but legal weed is nearing capacity at a state-by-state level, making federal action even more necessary.
Send questions to marijuana@westword.com.
