Voters in Florida, North Dakota, and South Dakota to decide on marijuana legalization initiatives in November

Welcome to the Thursday, Aug. 22, Brew.

Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:

1. Voters in Florida, North Dakota, and South Dakota to decide on marijuana legalization initiatives in November
2. Battleground incumbents fend off challengers with sizable margins of victory
3. Ballotpedia Staff Writer Nicole Fisher joins On the Ballot to discuss this year’s record number of abortion-related ballot measures

Voters in Florida, North Dakota, and South Dakota to decide on marijuana legalization initiatives in November

Voters in Florida, North Dakota, and South Dakota will decide on ballot initiatives to legalize recreational marijuana in November.

Currently, 24 states and Washington, D.C., have legalized the possession of marijuana for recreational use. In 13 states and D.C., legalization was achieved through the ballot initiative process. In two states, the legislature placed a measure on the ballot for voter approval. In the other nine states, marijuana was legalized through the legislative process.

There have been a total of 29 ballot measures proposing legalization of recreational marijuana use. Voters approved 16, but a court overturned one in South Dakota. The other 13 were defeated.

Ballotpedia found that the outcome of recreational marijuana measures correlates more with a state’s recent presidential voting history (for the previous three elections) than with a state’s trifecta status since 2010.

• There have been nine marijuana legalization ballot measures in states with Democratic presidential voting histories, with eight (89%) approved and one (11%) defeated.
• There have been 10 measures in states with Republican presidential voting histories, with four (40%) approved and six (60%) defeated.
• There have been four measures in states with mixed presidential voting histories, with three (75%) approved and one (25%) defeated.

Of the three states voting on marijuana legalization in November, two—North Dakota and South Dakota—have Republican presidential voting histories, while Florida has a mixed presidential voting history. Florida Amendment 3 would legalize marijuana and allow individuals to possess up to three ounces of marijuana. The initiative would not allow individuals to grow marijuana at home. A 60% supermajority vote is required to approve the amendment. In 2016, Florida voters approved a medical marijuana ballot initiative, Amendment 2, with 71.32% of the vote.

South Dakota Initiated Measure 29 would legalize marijuana and allow individuals to possess two ounces of marijuana. Individuals could grow up to six marijuana plants with a limit of 12 per household. South Dakota voters approved a marijuana legalization initiative in 2020, but the initiative was later ruled unconstitutional. In 2022, South Dakota voters rejected a marijuana legalization initiative with 52.92% voting against the measure.

North Dakota Initiated Measure 5 would legalize marijuana and allow individuals to possess up to one ounce of marijuana flower. Individuals would be allowed to grow three plants with a limit of six plants per household. North Dakota voters rejected a marijuana legalization initiative in 2018, with 59.45% of voters opposed, and again rejected an initiative in 2022, with 54.94% of voters opposed.

Campaigns submitted signatures for two initiatives in Nebraska to establish a medical marijuana program and an initiative in Arkansas to expand the state’s existing medical marijuana program.

Ohio was the most recent state to legalize marijuana in November 2023, when voters approved Issue 2.

In 2022, five states decided on marijuana legalization ballot measures. Voters in Arkansas, Missouri, North Dakota, and South Dakota considered citizen initiatives to legalize marijuana. The Missouri initiative was approved 53.10%-46.90%. In Arkansas, North Dakota, and South Dakota, the measures were defeated. In Maryland, the state legislature voted to put the issue before voters, who approved the measure 67.20%-32.80%.

Battleground incumbents fend off challengers with sizable margins of victory

Note: Vote percentages below may change as more votes are counted.

Here’s a quick recap of what happened in Tuesday’s primaries in Alaska, Florida, and Wyoming. We covered five races as battlegrounds. Three things to know about Tuesday’s elections:

• Battleground incumbents fended off challengers with sizable margins of victory.
• Incumbent Matt Gaetz’s (R) victory was a final blow to U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s (R) “‘revenge tour’ against the eight House Republicans who voted to oust him as speaker. The other seven GOP lawmakers either won their primaries, ran uncontested, or opted not to run for reelection.”
• Alaska’s at-large representative, Rep. Mary Peltola (D), advanced from the top-four primary. Peltola was first elected in 2022 and was the first Democrat to represent the district in 50 years.

Now onto highlights from the battleground races from Tuesday.

Florida

Incumbent Matt Gaetz (R) defeated Aaron Dimmock (R) 72.5%-27.5%. Gaetz and Gay Valimont (D) will be on the ballot in November.

Politico’s Gary Fineout said, “In the closing days before the primary, Gaetz campaigned with a long line of conservative Republicans across his district including Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), Reps. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.). Gaetz and his allies called on local Republicans to show up in force to ‘send a message’ to McCarthy and other D.C. Republicans. McCarthy had endorsed Dimmock and the super PAC that went after Gaetz had ties to those in McCarthy’s orbit.”

Incumbent Vern Buchanan (R) defeated Eddie Speir (R) 60.9%-39.1%. Buchanan and Jan Schneider (D) will be on the ballot in November.

Florida Politics’ Jacob Ogles said, “[Buchanan] defeated an anti-establishment challenge from Inspiration Academy founder Eddie Speir. … Speir tried to use Buchanan’s long record as a cudgel, painting the nine-term House member as an establishment politician. Speir painted himself, meanwhile, as the ultimate outsider — and plenty of Republican leaders in Manatee distanced themselves from him as a result.”

Rosie Cordero-Stutz (R) defeated 10 other candidates with 24.4% of the vote. Joe Sanchez (R), the second-place finisher, had 22.3%. Cordero-Stutz and James Reyes (D) will be on the ballot in November.

According to NBC 6 South Florida, “Miami-Dade County hasn’t had a top cop since 1966. … Since then, the head of the department has been an appointed position, currently with the title of ‘police director.’ But that changed in 2018, when Florida voters adopted Amendment 10 to the State Constitution, which prohibits counties from abolishing certain local offices, including sheriff, and requires elections for the offices. … [Cordero-Stutz] was considered a high-profile candidate as a 28-year veteran with [Miami-Dade Police Department] and even snagged a coveted endorsement from former President Donald Trump.”

Andrew Warren (D) defeated Elizabeth Martinez Strauss (D) 70.3%-29.7%. Warren and incumbent Suzy Lopez (R) will be on the ballot in November.

Florida Politics’ Selene SanFelice wrote, “Facing his replacement in November may not be so easy. … Before DeSantis suspended and ultimately replaced him with [Suzy] Lopez in 2022, Warren was twice elected to serve as State Attorney for the 13th Judicial Circuit in 2016 and 2020. DeSantis cited Warren’s pledge not to prosecute abortion-related crimes after Roe v. Wade was overturned, among other administrative priorities within his office at the time. … Warren had about $254,000 left in campaign funds and $60,000 in his affiliated political committee, Safer Stronger Florida, as of Aug. 15. Lopez is now at more than $875,000, including her affiliated political committee, Friends of Suzy Lopez.”

For seat 1, incumbent Jacqueline Porter won the primary outright with 53.5% of the vote. In Tallahassee, if one candidate receives more than 50% of the vote, that candidate wins the election outright and the general election is canceled. The second-place finisher, Rudolph Ferguson, had 38.8% of the vote.

For seat 2, incumbent Curtis Richardson and Dorothy Inman-Johnson advanced to the general election with 43.6% and 46.7% of the vote, respectively.

Florida Politics’ Christine Jordan Sexton said, “The Primary pitted progressive Democrats against establishment- and business-backed Democrats, with the former hoping to quash what has become a routine 3-2 split on major votes before the Tallahassee City Commission. … Progressive Democrats pushed for Inman-Johnson, a former Mayor and longtime Democratic activist, believing she would join Porter and Matlow to oust the current City Manager, Reese Goad. … Business-minded Democrats wanted to take out Porter, and threw their support behind Rudy Ferguson, a pastor and senior director of the Frontline Project.”

To view other election results from Tuesday, click below.

Ballotpedia Staff Writer Nicole Fisher joins On the Ballot to discuss this year’s record number of abortion-related ballot measures

On today’s episode of On the Ballot, Ballotpedia’s weekly podcast, Podcast Host Victoria Rose interviews Ballots Team Staff Writer Nicole Fisher about the record eight abortion-related measures on the ballot this November. At the time of the recording, eight measures had been certified, but as of Aug. 21, nine had been certified.

They review the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 and how that has affected the rise in abortion-related measures. They also explore the type of abortion-related measures decided in the years before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe, Arizona and Missouri’s recent certification of abortion-related measures, and the defining features of each measure that either has or may be certified in the weeks to come.

Subscribe to On the Ballot on YouTube or your preferred podcast app to learn more about abortion-related ballot measures! This episode is available now.