h Dakota and Arkansas voters reject legalization of recreational marijuana Voters in North Dakota, Arkansas and Missouri have rejected legalization measures for marijuana. However, Maryland voters have approved legalization. Similar measures were also on the ballot in Missouri, South Dakota, and South Dakota. North Dakota’s initiative would have allowed anyone 21 years old or older to legally grow and use marijuana at home. The initiatives on the ballot in five states are in line with President Joe Biden’s efforts to decriminalize marijuana. Biden announced last month that he would pardon thousands of Americans convicted under federal law of simple possession of marijuana. Nineteen other states have legalized marijuana. North Dakota supporters of legalizing recreational marijuana were successful in bringing the matter up for public vote. They submitted more than the required 15,582 valid petition signatories to get it on to the ballot. HTML2_ MIDTERM ELUTIONS 2022: LIVE UPDATE North Dakota voters rejected a marijuana legalization proposal that included a provision that would have erased all previous pot-related convictions in 2018. 2016 North Dakota voters approved medical cannabis. MARYLAND VOTER APPROVE LEGALIZATION RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA The Arkansas proposal was rejected six years later, after Arkansas voters declared Arkansas the first state in the Bible Belt that legalizes medical marijuana. In 2019, the state’s first dispensaries opened. Adults 21 years and older would have been allowed to legally possess up one ounce of marijuana for personal, non-medical use. It would have also allowed adults to purchase marijuana for recreational purposes from state-licensed dispensaries. THESE FIVE STATES COULD LEGALIZE MARIJUANA WITH MIDTERM BALLOT INITIATIVES The initiative attracted millions of dollars from both supporters and opponents of legalization. Ads crowded the state’s airwaves. Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson was a former head the federal Drug Enforcement Administration. She opposed the measure. A surprising alliance of marijuana advocates and legalization opponents formed to oppose the measure. Supporters of previous legalization efforts have argued that the measure is too restrictive and would only benefit a few dispensaries.