Oklahoma Voters Reject Proposal to Legalize Recreational Marijuana

Oklahoma voters rejected a state question on Tuesday that would have allowed for the recreational use of marijuana. The proposal was met with opposition from faith leaders, law enforcement, prosecutors, and Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt and many of the state’s GOP legislators.

Former Republican Gov. Frank Keating and Terri White, the former head of the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, led the opposition to the proposal. They argued that the state should focus on medical marijuana and that legalizing recreational use would lead to more addiction and crime.

The proposal would have made Oklahoma the 22nd state to legalize adult use of cannabis, joining conservative states like Montana and Missouri that have approved similar proposals in recent years. Supporters of the proposal argued that it would create jobs, generate tax revenue, and reduce the number of people incarcerated for marijuana-related offenses.

The proposal was defeated with 57.7% of voters voting against it. This is despite the fact that Oklahoma has some of the most lenient marijuana laws in the country, with medical marijuana being legal since 2018.

The results of the vote show that Oklahoma is not yet ready to join the other states that have legalized recreational marijuana. It remains to be seen if the proposal will be brought up again in the future.