Election Day 1998 turned into a stunning sweep for advocates of drug policy reform as voters in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Colorado, Arizona and Washington, DC rejected the extremist rhetoric of national officials.  While many of the newly passed laws still face uncertain futures in the face of federal law and congressional disapproval, the impact of the votes is sure to be dramatic.

In Oregon, a medical marijuana initiative passed while a bill which would have enhanced penalties for personal possession of marijuana was soundly defeated.  In Alaska and Washington State, medical marijuana initiatives won handily.  In Nevada, voters approved an amendment to the state constitution legalizing the medicinal use of marijuana.  That amendment will be on the ballot again in 2000 as voters must approve constitutional measures in consecutive elections.  In Colorado, an on-again off-again initiative was ruled invalid by a state appeals court just days before the election, after two disputed counts by the Secretary of State's office found petition signatures insufficient to qualify for the ballot (see below); but voters registered their support nonetheless, giving the initiative nearly 60% of the vote.  The following several articles discuss some of the more complex votes and situations surrounding this year's drug policy votes, and additional info is available on our web site at http://www.drcnet.org/election98/.
 

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