Nebraska: Voters Will Decide on Medical Marijuana Ballot Measures, But Await Judge’s Decision on Whether the Results Will Be Validated

A Nebraska district court judge is expected to decide in two weeks on litigation seeking to decertify a pair of medical cannabis access ballot initiatives from the 2024 ballot. 

State regulators affirmed on August 30^th that advocates Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana had gathered the requisite number of signatures to place the measures before voters. Opponents filed litigation shortly thereafter, alleging several thousand signatures should have been determined invalid because of clerical errors or malfeasance. Testimony and final arguments in that civil litigation concluded yesterday.

While a final ruling in the litigation remains pending, voters will nonetheless be able to vote on the ballot measures. Those votes will be counted and results of the vote will be made public.

Statewide polling conducted last month by Emerson College Polling found that Nebraskans support legalizing medical cannabis access by a nearly two to one margin.

Litigation challenging marijuana-related citizens’ initiated ballot measures is becoming increasingly common. In October, opponents of a proposed Arkansas ballot measure that sought to expand medical cannabis access successfully litigated to have the measure invalidated. Statewide survey data conducted prior to the ruling showed that a majority of voters supported the amendment’s passage.

Since 2020, opponents have successfully litigated against a number of marijuana-related ballot measures, resulting in those measures either being struck from the ballot or having the election results set aside.

“Whether or not one personally supports or opposes cannabis legalization, these cynical and undemocratic tactics ought to be a cause of deep concern,” NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano wrote in an op-ed addressing the trend. “In a healthy and functioning democracy, elected officials represent the views of the electorate. They should not consistently seek to undermine them.”

The two proposed Nebraska ballot measures (Initiated Measures 437 and 438) are complementary. The first permits qualified patients to possess and use cannabis. The second measure regulates the production and distribution of cannabis to authorized patients. Advocates had to frame the issue as two separate ballot questions so as not to run afoul of the state’s ‘single subject’ rule. In 2020, the state Supreme Court invalidated a similar stand-alone measure for addressing issues that it deemed were “not naturally and necessarily connected to the [initiative’s] primary purpose.” A 2022 effort failed to obtain sufficient signatures to qualify for the ballot.

Voters in Florida, North Dakota, and South Dakota are deciding on adult-use legalization measures on Election Day. In Texas, voters in the cities of Bastrop (population 11,200), Dallas (population: 1.3 million), and Lockhart (population 15,000) will decide on municipal ballot measures prohibiting local law enforcement from making low-level marijuana-related arrests.

Additional Election 2024 coverage is available from NORML.