Montana I-190, the Montana Marijuana Legalization and Tax Initiative was a cannabis legalization initiative that appeared on the November 3, 2020 Montana general election ballot. Passing with 57% approval, the initiative legalized recreational marijuana in the state effective January 1, 2021. Along with Arizona, New Jersey and South Dakota, Montana was one of four states that legalized cannabis via ballot measures in the November 2020 election.
Montana Marijuana Legalization and Tax Initiative | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Results by county
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| Source: Montana Secretary of State
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The sponsor of the initiative was New Approach Montana, in partnership with the Marijuana Policy Project.[1]
History
editInitiative I-190 (legislation) and matching constitutional amendment initiative were submitted by New Approach Montana to the Montana Secretary of State in January,[2][3] and approved for signature gathering as of May 1, 2020.[4] Following a lawsuit and a declaration from the Montana Supreme Court, the Montana Secretary of State determined that mail-in voter signatures would be allowed for all initiatives without requiring notary seal,[5][1] and starting May 9, the sponsors made a downloadable mail-in form available.[6] On June 19, groups collecting voter signatures for the legalization initiative said they had submitted almost twice the minimum to the Secretary of State by the deadline.[7] The sponsors announced in July that they had reached the threshold for ballot inclusion, based on county-level voter certification.[8]
On August 13, the Montana Secretary of State announced it had qualified for the November ballot.[9]
The initiative was approved by voters on November 3, 2020.[10]
Polling
editOn Initiative 190
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[a] |
Margin of error |
For Initiative 190 | Against Initiative 190 | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montana State University Billings[11] | October 19–24, 2020 | 546 (LV) | ± 4.2% | 54% | 38% | – | 7% |
| Montana State University Bozeman[12] | September 14 – October 2, 2020 | 1,607 (LV) | ± 3.9% | 49% | 39% | 2%[b] | 10% |
On whether recreational marijuana should be legal
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[a] |
Margin of error |
Yes | No | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Montana[13] | February 12–22, 2020 | 498 (LV) | ± 4.39% | 54% | 37% | 9% |
| University of Montana[14] | February 21 – March 1, 2019 | 293 (RV) | ± 5.7% | 51% | 37% | 12% |
Results
edit| Choice | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|
| For | 341,037 | 56.90 |
| Against | 258,337 | 43.10 |
| Blank votes | 12,701 | - |
| Total | 612,075 | 100 |
| Registered voters/turnout | 752,538 | 81.33 |
| Source: Montana Secretary of State | ||
Notes
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Montana I-190, Marijuana Legalization and Tax Initiative (2020), Ballotpedia, accessed June 3, 2020
- ^ Seaborn Larson (January 15, 2020). "Cannabis campaign submits legalization drafts for 2020 ballot". Missoulian. Missoula, Montana.
- ^ "Campaign to legalize marijuana in Montana offers ballot initiatives". Associated Press. January 14, 2020 – via Boston Globe.
- ^ PROPOSED 2020 BALLOT ISSUES, Montana Secretary of State, accessed June 3, 2020
- ^ Hunter Pauli (May 8, 2020). "Montana OKs mail-in ballot initiative signatures". Montana Free Press.
- ^ Melissa Schiller (May 11, 2020), Montana's Cannabis Legalization Campaign Launches Signature Drive Despite COVID-19 Setbacks: Legalization Watch, Cannabis Business Times,
After losing a court battle to collect signatures electronically, New Approach Montana kicked off a statewide signature drive to get two complementary adult-use cannabis legalization measures on the state's 2020 ballot.
- ^ Jonathon Ambarian (June 19, 2020). "Initiative signature deadline arrives; marijuana legalization advocates report 130K for two measures". Helena: KTVH-DT.
- ^ Seaborn Larson (July 17, 2020). "Marijuana group 'certain' legalization will be on Montana general election ballot". Missoulian.
- ^ "Marijuana Legalization Measure to Appear on November Ballot". Associated Press. August 13, 2020 – via U.S. News & World Report.
- ^ Melissa Loveridge (November 4, 2020). "Recreational marijuana initiatives pass in Montana". Bozeman Daily Chronicle.
- ^ Montana State University Billings
- ^ Montana State University Bozeman Archived 2020-10-19 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ University of Montana
- ^ University of Montana
External links
edit- 2020 ballot issues at Montana Secretary of State
- Montana I-190, Marijuana Legalization and Tax Initiative (2020) at Ballotpedia