Portland, Me., becomes first East Coast city to legalize marijuana

[unhappycamper]

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2013/11/04/207428/pot-will-be-on-the-ballot-tuesday.html



Voters in Portland, Me., made their city the first on the East Coast to legalize marijuana on Tuesday. Legalization supporters spent $2,500 to display marijuana billboards on the outside of four city buses and in two bus shelters.

Portland, Me., becomes first East Coast city to legalize marijuana
Posted by Rob Hotakainen
on November 4, 2013 Updated 9 hours ago

Voters in Portland, Me., made their city the first on the East Coast to legalize marijuana on Tuesday.

Shortly after the polls closed, the Portland Press Herald said the measure would pass easily, and supporters had already claimed victory.

The Portland law will allow residents to possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana. Proponents spent $2,500 to buy pro-pot billboards on city buses and in bus shelters to get it passed.

As polls show a majority of Americans now backing legalized pot, marijuana issues were on the ballot in two other states.

[B Calm]

1. Be a cold day in hell before Indiana joins the movement!

With Tea Bag Governor Mike Pence, we'll always be in the dark ages.

[eShirl]

3. Take heart; we have a Tea Bag Governor too.

There's hope for you yet!

[B Calm]

4. What state you in?

[eShirl]

5. Maine

not in Portland, but the same state as this story

[B Calm]

6. I will take heart!

[In_The_Wind]

2. I really did love Maine when I was there recently.

Maybe I should move there.

[Uncle Joe]

7. Kicked and recommended by a good margin of victory.

https://bangordailynews.com/2013/11/05/news/portland/early-returns-show-portland-strongly-backing-pot-legalization/

PORTLAND, Maine — In a vote that marijuana advocates hope is a preview of a statewide campaign in 2016, Portland residents supported by a wide margin a measure that will legalize marijuana possession in Maine’s largest city.

With all 12 of the city’s precincts reporting just before 10:30 p.m., the legalization referendum held a 9,921-4,823 advantage. That represented more than 67 percent in favor of the measure. The Bangor Daily News called the race just after 9 p.m. Tuesday.

“We’ve had dozens of volunteers on the street today, going into neighborhoods, [handing out literature], finding voters, bringing them to the polls,” said Portland City Councilor David Marshall, one of the key organizers of the legalization effort. “We had heavier voter turnout than expected in Portland … which was a really good sign, because our whole goal was to get the people who generally don’t vote in these off-year elections out to the polls in order to support this.”

The referendum was watched closely not only across the state of Maine, but across the country as well, as supporters sought to establish an East Coast beachhead after successful pot legalization efforts in Washington state and Colorado.

Thanks for the thread, unhappycamper.