N.H. override narrowly fails despite victory in the House
Last update: October 28, 2009
The New Hampshire General Court narrowly failed to override Gov. John Lynch's veto of HB 648, the medical marijuana bill. The New Hampshire legislature has never successfully overridden one of Gov. Lynch's vetoes, but your efforts helped us to a victory in the House and to within two votes of breaking his streak.
Please call your representatives and senator, and thank them if they voted "yes" on the override, or express your disappointment if they voted to continue the criminalization of the seriously ill. Clicking on the call link will show you who your legislators are, and will include links where you can find out how they voted.
Two-thirds majorities were needed in both the House and the Senate to override the governor's veto. The override passed in the House by a vote of 240-115, but came two votes shy in the Senate, which voted 14-10. Two senators who voted against protecting patients — Senators Betsi DeVries and Ted Gatsas — are facing local elections on Tuesday, November 3 in Manchester, and we hope they will continue to hear from patients and concerned citizens about their votes.
Although the Senate vote was incredibly disappointing, MPP and our allies in New Hampshire will continue to work on behalf of medical marijuana patients in New Hampshire in pressing for compassionate, commonsense marijuana policy reform.
We've seen that advocacy, education, and constituent feedback can change votes. In 2007, the House defeated a medical marijuana bill. But today, after a two-year campaign, 67.6% of the House voted to make the bill law. We're confident that it is only a matter of time before New Hampshire patients will finally be protected. A first step to making that happen is letting your legislators know how you feel about their votes.
Matt Simon of the NH Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy and Bob Blaisdell and everyone at the Demers Group contributed invaluable advocacy work. The bill would not have made it this far without Matt and Bob's dedication.
All of the courageous New Hampshire patients who spoke out publicly in support of this bill deserve our gratitude as well — Sandy Drew, Clayton Holton, Dennis Acton, Ellen McClung, Barbara Filleul, and Scott Turner, who passed away in August.
Reps. Evalyn Merrick, Roger Wells, Cindy Rosenwald, Trinka Russell, Tom Donovan, and James Pilliod, and Sens. Martha Fuller Clark and John Gallus demonstrated their political courage in championing this bill, and they deserve a lot of credit. Without their tireless work, the bill would not have made it as far as it did. We'd also like to extend a special thank you to Dr. Joe McSherry, who testified in favor of the bill and met with Gov. Lynch; Dr. Mandy Gennaro; and all of the other medical professionals who have spoken out in favor of the bill.
And, of course, thank you to everyone who has taken action so far. Your phone calls, e-mails, faxes, and donations helped move the bill this far. If you are a patient or a concerned New Hampshire citizen, please contact us to share your story and to find out what you can do to continue the fight for marijuana policy reform in New Hampshire.
New Hampshire patients
Before Gov. Lynch vetoed the bill, MPP ran TV ads featuring New Hampshire residents who have benefited from medical marijuana. You can watch them below. To read about other patients in New Hampshire, please visit www.NHCompassion.org.
Sandy Drew
Dennis Acton
Widespread support for medical marijuana
A 2008 Mason-Dixon poll showed that 71% of New Hampshire voters support allowing seriously and terminally ill patients to use and grow medical marijuana for personal use if their doctors recommend it. A majority of Democrats, Republicans, and Independents support this policy as well. With overwhelming public support like this, there was no excuse for New Hampshire legislators not to pass medical marijuana legislation, and you should tell your legislators so.
An April 2009 poll by the University of New Hampshire showed that 45% of New Hampshire voters would be more likely to vote for their state senator if he or she supported the medical marijuana bill, while only 24% would be less likely.
It's clear that supporting medical marijuana is the politically smart stance to take. Please let your state senators and Gov. Lynch know you want them to support HB 648.
Stay informed on marijuana policy reform efforts
To stay updated on the status of marijuana policy reform in New Hampshire, be sure to subscribe to MPP's free legislative alert service.
