Voters in Denver will not get the opportunity this year to decide whether the city should legalize the social use of marijuana in private clubs.
A report from the Denver Post indicates that one of the two ballot measures fighting to provide cannabis consumers with the freedom to enjoy marijuana outside a private residence did not manage to collect enough valid signatures to be included on November ballot.
However, a proposal seeking to legalize social marijuana use in bars and restaurants is still in play.
The failed initiative, which was brought to the table by the folks at the Denver chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), needed 4,726 certified signatures to advance to the next level. The group submitted more than 7,500 signatures prior to the deadline, but election officials say that only about 3,000 of them could be verified for eligibility. That’s because the Denver Elections Division has refused to count any of the signatures that were collected outside of the metropolitan area.
Organizers with Denver NORML told the Post that while they are disappointed in how many signatures the city tossed in the garbage, they are “not going to stop” fighting to bring some democracy to what they believe is a “better” option for allowing residents and tourists to enjoy marijuana in a social environment.
There is still a good chance that Denver voters will get to decide on the social use issue later this fall. Supporters behind a second ballot measure, which has been deemed the Neighborhood-Supported Cannabis Consumption Initiative, will know sometime next week whether their desire to give businesses the freedom to allow public pot consumption will advance to the ballot.
The group behind this effort recently submitted more than 10,000 signatures to election officials.
