Citizens of Lamar have spoken.
Ballot Question 300 failed to pass in Tuesday’s election, which marks the second election in a row, where Lamar citizens have chosen to support more lax marijuana laws in Lamar.
During last year’s election, voters voted to allow retail marijuana in Lamar, although it was later struck down by a judge who said the results were invalid due to problems with the original petition. Based on the number of signatures the petition initially received, it should have never appeared on the ballot to begin with.
Although the results of Question 300 don’t change current marijuana laws in Lamar, it does leave the door open for retail marijuana to get back on the ballot at a later date. If Question 300 would have passed, it would have made getting retail marijuana back on the ballot more difficult.
While the outcome wasn’t what Roger Stagner hoped for, he says it is what it is.
“It didn’t tickle me to death,” Stagner said. “I’m not thrilled, but the people that came out to vote at least came out and voted for what they thought was best, and I have no problem with that.”
What Stagner, former mayor and former city councilman in Lamar, does have a problem with is the low voter turnout. Although roughly 59% of eligible voters turned in their ballots, Stagner thinks this number could still be higher.
“This (Ballot Question 300) was a very important initiative to me, and some others might not have been as important to me. But I still want…