• Home
  • News
  • Fortune 500
  • Tech
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
FeaturesMarijuana

Voters lit up for marijuana in the midterms

By
TIME
TIME
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
TIME
TIME
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 5, 2014, 8:06 AM ET
A man attends the first cultivation of cannabis authorized for medicinal purposes in Santiago
A man wearing a t-shirt with a marijuana leaf and a tattoo featuring a medicine symbol attends the first cultivation of cannabis authorized for medicinal purposes in Chile, Santiago October 29, 2014. The project will benefit about 200 people living with cancer through treatment made with cannabis oil, according organizers. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado (CHILE - Tags: SOCIETY AGRICULTURE DRUGS) - RTR4C3WFPhotograph by Ivan Alvarado — Reuters

This post is in partnership with Time. The article below was originally published at Time.com

By Katy Steinmetz, TIME

“You did it! Isn’t this amazing?” Oregon Rep. Earl Blumenauer said to a room full of supporters in Portland on Tuesday night after being reelected. But he wasn’t celebrating his own win, he was celebrating another victory for legal pot.

“You knew we could do better than the failed policy of prohibition,” Blumenauer said.

Voters in Oregon on Tuesday chose to follow Colorado and Washington state in passing a ballot measure that will create the country’s third legal market for recreational marijuana. Measure 91, which passed with 54% of the vote, makes it legal for residents 21 and older to possess and grow marijuana, and tasks the state liquor control commission with regulating the substance.

A similar proposal in Alaska remained to be decided as of late Tuesday night.

Legalization advocates also won a victory inWashington, D.C. With nearly 70% of the vote in favor, residents in the nation’s capital adopted what some industry experts call a “soft legalization” measure. While the District won’t have a regulated market like Oregon, it’s now legal for residents 21 and older to possess up to 2 oz. of marijuana and cultivate up to six plants at home, as well as give 1 oz. of marijuana to someone else, without payment. Selling pot is still not allowed.


The D.C. news comes with caveats for residents ready to celebrate: the new rules apply only to those who live in the three-quarters of D.C. that is not on federal land, where the substance remains verboten. Congress also has the power to step in and supersede the actions of D.C. officials.

Guam became the first U.S. territory to legalize medical marijuana, joining the District of Columbia and 23 states. But legalization advocates lost a their battle for a similar proposal in Florida. After deep-pocketed advocates on both sides spent millions, the measure to legalize medical pot got 57% of the vote but needed 60% to pass. Big spenders like casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, who shelled out $98 in the 2012 elections, donated roughly $5 million to defeat the measure. For now, this bellwether remains more purple than green.

South Portland, Maine, legalized marijuana in a somewhat symbolic vote, while voters in Lewiston, Maine, shot down a similar proposal. The measure makes it legal for residents to possess up to 1 oz. of marijuana, though consuming or displaying weed in public remains illegal. More important, the drug remains illegal on a state and federal level, and the measure did not address taxation or regulation of a legalized market. Portland, Maine’s largest city, passed a similar measure in 2013.

About the Author
By TIME
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Features

FeaturesThe Boring Company
Two firefighters suffered chemical burns in a Boring Co. tunnel. Then the Nevada Governor’s office got involved, and the penalties disappeared
By Jessica Mathews and Leo SchwartzNovember 12, 2025
22 days ago
CoreWeave executives pose in front of the Nasdaq building on the day of the company's IPO.
AIData centers
Data-center operator CoreWeave is a stock-market darling. Bears see its finances as emblematic of an AI infrastructure bubble
By Jeremy Kahn and Leo SchwartzNovember 8, 2025
27 days ago
Libery Energy's hydraulic fracturing, or frac, spreads are increasingly electrified with natural gas power, a technology now translating to powering data centers.
Energy
AI’s insatiable need for power is driving an unexpected boom in oil-fracking company stocks 
By Jordan BlumOctober 23, 2025
1 month ago
Politics
Huge AI data centers are turning local elections into fights over the future of energy
By Sharon GoldmanOctober 22, 2025
1 month ago
A plane carrying Donald Trump Jr. arrives in January in Nuuk, Greenland, where he is making a short private visit after his father, President Trump, suggested Washington annex the autonomous Danish territory.
EnergyGreenland
A Texas company plans to drill for oil in Greenland despite a climate change ban and Trump’s desire to annex the territory
By Jordan BlumOctober 22, 2025
1 month ago
Three of the founders of Multiverse Computing.
AIChange the World
From WhatsApp friends to a $500 million–plus valuation: These founders argue their tiny AI models are better for customers and the planet
By Vivienne WaltOctober 9, 2025
2 months ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
Two months into the new fiscal year and the U.S. government is already spending more than $10 billion a week servicing national debt
By Eleanor PringleDecember 4, 2025
22 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
‘Godfather of AI’ says Bill Gates and Elon Musk are right about the future of work—but he predicts mass unemployment is on its way
By Preston ForeDecember 4, 2025
18 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang admits he works 7 days a week, including holidays, in a constant 'state of anxiety' out of fear of going bankrupt
By Jessica CoacciDecember 4, 2025
17 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Nearly 4 million new manufacturing jobs are coming to America as boomers retire—but it's the one trade job Gen Z doesn't want
By Emma BurleighDecember 4, 2025
18 hours ago
placeholder alt text
North America
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos commit $102.5 million to organizations combating homelessness across the U.S.: ‘This is just the beginning’
By Sydney LakeDecember 2, 2025
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Health
Bill Gates decries ‘significant reversal in child deaths’ as nearly 5 million kids will die before they turn 5 this year
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 4, 2025
1 day ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.