Votes On Arkansas Medical Marijuana Expansion Measure Won’t Be Counted, State Supreme Court Rules

Arkansas voters will get to decide on a medical marijuana expansion initiative at the ballot next month—but those votes will no longer count following a new state Supreme Court ruling.

Prohibitionists who challenged the cannabis measure from Arkansans for Patient Access (APA) successfully convinced the court that the ballot title was affirmatively misleading, and justices ruled on Monday that votes will not be processed after Election Day.

The state’s highest court said it was siding the anti-marijuana group Protect Arkansas Kids (PAK), agreeing that the measure’s title is misleading because it fails to adequately explain that—beyond expanding the state’s medical marijuana program—it would also more broadly legalize possession of cannabis if a federal policy change is made and would also restrict the legislature from revising the voter-approved law if enacted.

“For these reasons, we hold that the proposed amendment is misleading,” Justice Shawn Womack wrote in the majoity opinion. “Accordingly, we grant the Intervenors’ request for relief and order that the Secretary be enjoined from canvassing or certifying any ballots cast for the proposed amendment at the November 5, 2024, general election.”

“To ensure that the will of the people is respected and implemented, proposed amendments must be clear—not misleading. In this case, the Intervenors have met their burden of showing that the proposed amendment’s popular name and ballot title are misleading and therefore insufficient to satisfy the requirements of amendment 7, as codified in article 5, section 1 of the Arkansas Constitution. The Secretary is thus enjoined from canvassing or certifying any ballots cast for the proposed amendment at the November 5, 2024, general election.”

A dissenting opinion authored by Justice Cody Hilan says that “when all legal hurdles have been cleared, and we are tasked with making the final decision on sufficiency that tiptoes closely into the realm of judicial subjectivity, we must be faithful to evaluate on the basis of past precedent and through a lens of ‘liberal construction and interpretation’; ensuring that the benefit of the doubt rests with the people who have inherited the guarantee of liberty and the freedom to govern of themselves—the people of Arkansas.”

“For that reason, having analyzed the popular name and ballot title against the plain language of our standard, I find that neither are misleading,” he said. “Therefore, I would grant APA’s petition, deny PAK’s request for relief, and find that APA’s popular name and ballot title are not misleading.”

This comes weeks after the court ordered the secretary of state to continue counting about 18,000 signatures for the medical marijuana expansion ballot initiative regardless of his argument that they’re invalid because of the manner in which the petitions were processed.

While three justices ultimately agreed with PAK’s claims about a misleading ballot title, it rejected a separate challenge from Secretary of State John Thurston (R), who initially declined to count about 18,000 signatures because the petitions were signed by representatives of a third-party canvassing company the campaign hired, as opposed to the amendment sponsor.

The court said that point is moot because of how the statute defines a sponsor, which is broader and would encompass those third-party representatives.

Regardless, the measure is now only on the ballot because a printing deadline has passed, and so now any votes cast on the reform will not be counted.

Two temporary, governor-appointed replacements for recused justices joined the opinion invalidating the vote.  The idea that Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) would be determining those replacements was a point of concern for the cannabis campaign given Sanders’s opposition to the reform.

In any case, the marijuana proposal was principally aimed at building upon the state’s existing medical cannabis program, which was created under an earlier voter-approved measure. It would have achieved that by making it so healthcare professionals could issue recommendations to patients for any condition they see fit and letting patients grow their own marijuana at home.

Nurse practitioners, physician’s assistants pharmacists and osteopathic doctors would have been added to the list of professionals who could make those recommendations. Also, patients wouldn’t have needed to renew their medical marijuana cards until three years, versus one year under the current law.

The initiative would have also permitted dispensaries to start selling pre-rolled joints.

A recent survey found that a majority of likely voters in Arkansas are in favor of the initiative to significantly expand the state’s medical marijuana program.

— Marijuana Moment is tracking more than 1,500 cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments. Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access. —

The state’s medical marijuana has proved popular since its implementation in 2019, with officials announcing in May that at least 102,000 residents have registered for patient cards, exceeding expectations.

Meanwhile, last August a law took effect in the state clarifying that medical marijuana patients can obtain concealed carry licenses for firearms.

Arkansas voters defeated a ballot initiative to more broadly legalize marijuana for adults in 2022.

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