By Samantha Lewis

A proposal to legalize recreational marijuana in North Dakota was to appear on last year's ballot, but after missing the signature cut, it has launched another petition in hopes of getting its chance to get permission to participate in the 2022 general election. Supporters of the measure, which would amend the state constitution to legalize personal possession of cannabis, submitted their petition to Secretary of State Al Jaeger on Monday (11 January) to put it on the ballot. If Jaegers agrees, supporters can begin collecting the 26,904 signatures needed to get on a ballot and qualify for a 2022 election.

However, Vetter said his latest push was hampered by the COVID-19 pandemic, which interrupted the petition process for months. Last year, he collected around 2,000 signatures to qualify for the referendum, but he noted that he felt better prepared and had more time between now and the next election. The new measure, which was circulated before last year's election, focuses on legalizing recreational marijuana for adults over 21, not for people 18 and older.

An earlier attempt to legalize recreational cannabis in North Dakota failed in 2014 by a 52-47 vote in the state House of Representatives.