Advocates of a ballot initiative that would eliminate Massachusetts’ $1.6 billion annual legal cannabis industry claim they are “on track” to qualify the controversial measure for the November 2026 ballot.
Representatives of the campaign behind the Act to Restore a Sensible Marijuana Policy have until Dec. 3 to collect roughly 75,000 signatures.
In a recent interview with the Cannabis Business Times, Wendy Wakeman, a spokesperson for the initiative, said that the campaign’s goal is to collect 100,000 signatures – and that effort is “going well.”
As MJBizDaily has reported, the ballot questions filed by lead sponsor Caroline Cunningham, a member of the state Republican Committee, seek to repeal Chapters 94G and 64N of the state’s General Laws.
While that would still allow home cultivation and the “gifting” of cannabis between adults 21 and over, adult-use retail sales would be outlawed.
Only medical marijuana sales would continue if the measure is successful.
Will adult-use marijuana sales end in Massachusetts?
Even if the signature gathering effort is successful, the campaign to repeal legal cannabis sales in Massachusetts would face an uphill climb.
Fifty-three percent of Massachusetts voters approved adult-use legalization in 2016.
And since then, cannabis may have become more popular.
Sixty-five percent of respondents to a 2024 MassInc poll said adult-use marijuana legalization was the right choice, compared to only 22% who said it was the wrong move.
Other sponsors of the measure include a leading psychiatrist and a pastor, who claim to be concerned about cannabis’ deleterious effects on youth as well as the illicit market that’s continued despite legalization.
Familiar Republican opposition to marijuana legalization
That echoes critiques made by other prominent anti-cannabis advocates, including those seeking to convince President Donald Trump to abandon his promise to consider downgrading cannabis’ status under federal law.
Despite pledging to review the issue over the summer, Trump has yet to weigh in on marijuana rescheduling.
Meanwhile in Florida, a recently filed lawsuit accuses Republican state officials of tampering with elections in order to defeat legalization.
