Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen holds a news conference in Lincoln, Neb., Nov. 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A judge’s ruling on Tuesday has brought Nebraska closer to allowing medical marijuana after voters supported it in overwhelming numbers three weeks ago. Lancaster County District Judge Susan Strong determined that the petitions used to place the issue on the ballot were valid, giving advocates a significant win. However, this decision could be challenged in the state’s highest court by opponents of the measure.
Judge Strong stated that in order for the petition signatures to be ruled invalid, the plaintiffs and the Secretary of State would have to prove that more than 3,463 signatures on one petition and 3,357 on another were invalid. The state failed to show such a large number of invalid signatures, with fewer than 1,000 signatures on each petition deemed problematic.
A spokesperson for the Nebraska Attorney General’s office indicated that they are reviewing the decision and may appeal it to the state Supreme Court.
While medical marijuana advocates did not immediately comment on the ruling, it follows a strong showing from voters on November 5, when over two-thirds of Nebraskans backed the legalization. The results are expected to be officially certified by December 2.
Secretary of State Bob Evnen and Attorney General Mike Hilgers had argued that the petitions contained significant issues, such as fraudulent signature gathering. One petition circulator in Grand Island was even criminally charged with falsifying 164 signatures. They also questioned whether other signatures were properly notarized.
The group Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana countered in court, stating that despite any possible flaws in some signatures, they had collected far more than the 86,499 needed to put the measure on the ballot. The Secretary of State’s office had certified nearly 90,000 signatures for both the medical marijuana petition and the one to create a regulatory commission.
Judge Strong agreed with the medical marijuana supporters, saying the state did not prove widespread fraud. Her review focused on the single petition circulator charged with a crime and raised concerns about the notarization of certain signatures. However, after examining over 800 pages of messages exchanged by the campaign’s organizers, the judge found only one mention of notarizing outside the circulator’s presence.
This marks the third attempt by Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana to bring the issue to a vote. The group had previously fallen short in 2020 and 2022. In 2020, they gathered enough signatures, but the state Supreme Court blocked the measure, citing concerns that it violated rules about focusing on a single issue. This year, however, they succeeded in reaching the ballot.
In contrast, voters in North Dakota, South Dakota, and Florida rejected similar measures for recreational marijuana this year. Nonetheless, many states have already legalized marijuana for medical or recreational use, with Ohio being the most recent in 2023. Additionally, in May, the federal government began reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous substance.
