Massachusetts Cannabis Business Association calls out “organized voter fraud by campaign to ban marijuana reported statewide”
If you have been on Reddit or any of the socials this past week, or if you have followed our team at Talking Joints Memo, then you have heard the noise building around the prohibitionist effort to ban recreational dispensaries in Massachusetts.
With momentum against the initiative, which is still in the signature-collecting phase, building, the Massachusetts Cannabis Coalition, which bills itself as “founded on principles of unifying the cannabis community to work together for a better industry,” is set to address the threat at its annual meeting in Worcester this Friday. Meanwhile, the Massachusetts Cannabis Business Association also stepped up. The latter released the following statement on the matter (which referenced prior TJM reporting):
Organized voter fraud is being committed by paid signature gatherers for the Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts, the committee pushing two cannabis ballot questions, prompting concerned residents and cannabis advocates to issue an urgent warning to all registered voters throughout Massachusetts. The two questions would make possession of marijuana a crime in the Commonwealth.
According to online reports, voters in communities across the state have reported instances of bait and switch tactics and other forms of voter fraud from those collecting signatures for these two questions, including Burlington, Chicopee, Brockton, Longmeadow, and Westfield.
Voters in Wilmington report being told that the ballot questions would prevent young people from being arrested for marijuana possession. The proposed ballot questions contain no language about protected young people from arrest.
“Online news, social media, and the personal experiences of multiple voters across Massachusetts clearly demonstrate that these for-hire, out-of-state signature crews are using deceptive tactics to trick people,” Mass CBS President and CEO David O’Brien said in a statement. “These out of state crews go from state to state collecting signatures and clearly they’re having trouble here in Massachusetts finding people who want to repeal our highly effective cannabis laws and kill our successful cannabis industry. … This is voter fraud that people should report to their local town hall.”
The CBD media release added: “Unscrupulous signature contractors are known to use fake cover sheets for unrelated ballot petitions. Multiple voters in Waltham report being told they were signing petitions for ‘affordable housing’ and ‘same day voter registration’ with signature gatherers going so far as to set up a table with such fraudulent messaging. Other fraudulent messaging reported by the voters has included claims that the ballot question will strengthen fentanyl testing requirements for marijuana and expand buffer zones between dispensaries and schools.”
Meg Sanders, the CEO of Canna Provisions in Western Mass, said in the media release: “Voters going to the polls on Election Day next Tuesday, Nov. 4, should expect signature gatherers to be at polling places throughout the state. … Know what you are signing! Take your time and read the petition language. If it doesn’t say what the collector claims, don’t sign it.”
