In a last-minute push to make the November ballot, folks backing the legalization of medical marijuana tell us their petition drive needs several thousand more names as time is running out.

As NCN’s Joe Jordan reports the deadline to turn in the names to the Secretary of State is 5pm tomorrow (Wednesday), and as of late Sunday the backers of medical marijuana said they were still 12,000 names short of their goal.

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In 2020 and 2022 petition drives for medical marijuana came up short, backers now hoping this third time is the charm.

Joe Jordan, NCN: “Unlike other petition drives out on the street right now, such as those dealing with abortion that look to change the Nebraska Constitution and need 123,000 valid signatures. The push for medical marijuana is a straight change in state law and requires far fewer signatures: 87,000. But we’re told that that is still a major challenge.”

Crista Eggers is in charge of the petition drive for medical marijuana.

Crista Eggers, NE for Medical Marijuana: “We need 87,000 valid signatures. We came in with 100,000 two years ago and that was not enough after the state tossed signatures for validity. People were not registered voters, somebody signed as Matt instead of Matthew. Very, very technicalities. What we know is that we can’t come in just over. We have to have this huge buffer. And that has been the challenge raising enough money to get this done.”

While looking at a Wednesday deadline the Nebraska debate over medical marijuana goes back several years and the pros and cons have changed little if at all.

(2020) Christa Eggers, Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana: “I’m pleading with you, not as a campaign manager but as a mom who has a seven-year-old little boy who desperately, desperately as so many patients do in this state need an option for us to talk with his doctor about medical cannabis as a treatment option.”

(2018) Joe Jordan, NCN: “You’ve got kids, if God forbid, one of them had some type of debilitating disease and was in pain, suffering—you tried everything you could—wouldn’t you like the opportunity to try something like medical marijuana to see if that would alleviate our child’s pain and suffering?” 

Sen. Pete Ricketts (then Governor): “Well, I’ve sat down with the families, and they are very sympathetic.  To protect the public safety, you really have to make sure it goes through the FDA process.”

Nebraska is one of only six states without some form of legalized medical marijuana.