LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — The sponsor of the proposed constitutional amendment to expand access to medical marijuana sued Secretary of State John Thurston on Tuesday for how he handled the signatures for the Arkansas Marijuana Amendment of 2024.
Arkansans for Patient Access (APA), the ballot committee sponsoring the proposed medical marijuana amendment, filed a lawsuit challenging Thurston's decision not to count about 28,413 signatures and asking the Arkansas Supreme Court to certify their measure for the ballot ahead of the start of early voting on Oct. 21.
According to documents, APA submitted over 150,000 voter signatures supporting the proposed amendment, surpassing the required 90,000.
However, Thurston sent a letter to the group stating that 10,521 of the signatures submitted during the cure period were valid, bringing the total to 88,040.
In the lawsuit, APA argued that Thurston wrongfully refused to validate and count signatures because some of the group's paid canvassers were not registered before collecting signatures.
Such action would violate the Arkansas Code, but the APA said each paid canvasser whose petition parts were axed registered with the secretary before collecting signatures. The group said it was the same process Thurston had accepted for years.
"It appears that the certification of the Medical Marijuana Amendment of 2024 has been blocked for reasons unrelated to the proposal’s merits, with political motives influencing the decision," Arkansans for Patient Access said. "We are deeply disappointed by this outcome."
APA is asking the Arkansas Supreme Court for three things:
- A preliminary injunction compelling the counting of all signatures
- Appointment of a special master to find the facts
- Expedited action to prepare the ballot measure for the November 2024 general election
Bill Paschal, a sponsor of the medical marijuana amendment, said the Arkansas Supreme Court ordered Thurston to respond by noon on Oct. 2 and identify the number of signatures he refused to count.