Marijuana measures won big on Election Day, with voters in at least seven states approving wider use of the drug for recreational and medical purposes.
Nevada, California and Massachusetts approved measures legalizing the recreational use of marijuana, and Maine appeared likely on Wednesday morning to pass such a law as well. Florida, North Dakota and Arkansas voters passed initiatives legalizing its use for certain medical reasons. Montana passed a measure rolling back some existing restrictions on the use of marijuana for medical purposes.
The victories significantly expand the percentage of Americans living in places where the drug is legal and may put pressure on Congress to ditch federal restrictions on its use.
A recreational marijuana measure did fail in one state, Arizona.
The recreational marijuana measures all included restrictions on how much of the drug people can possess and carry. Maine’s measure would allow people to carry up to 2.5 ounces of the drug, while that would be capped at one ounce in the rest of the states.
The three states with new medical marijuana laws also place restrictions on how it may be used. Arkansas’ measure would allow a limited number of licenses for marijuana growers and dispensers. Florida and North Dakota’s measures would allow marijuana to be used medically for only qualifying conditions.
Before Tuesday, using marijuana recreationally was legal only in four states and the District of Columbia. Twenty states allowed it for medical use. But as more states embrace the use of marijuana, it could put more pressure on Congress to repeal the federal prohibition on the drug as laid out under the Controlled Substances Act.
President Obama has been somewhat averse to easing federal restrictions on marijuana. Steps could include directing the Department of Enforcement Administration to recategorize the substance from a Schedule 1 drug to a Schedule 2 drug, which would make federal marijuana prosecution a lower priority than it already is.
Yet his administration did take steps in August to allow more research institutions beyond just the University of Mississippi to grow marijuana and use it to conduct clinical trials.
More Americans support legalizing marijuana than ever before. A new Gallup poll last month found that 60 percent of U.S. adults now say the drug should be allowed, compared with just 12 percent of adults when the poll first asked the question in 1969.
