N.H. override narrowly fails -- thank or "spank" your legislators

As you may have seen in MPP's national alert, the New Hampshire General Court narrowly failed to override Gov. John Lynch's veto of HB 648, the medical marijuana bill.

Please call your representatives and senator today, 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. If your senator voted "no" and this will affect your vote on Election Day, let him or her know. Two senators who voted against protecting patients — Senators Betsi DeVries and Ted Gatsas — will be up for local elections on Tuesday, November 3 in Manchester.

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.

We'd like to thank Matt Simon of the NH Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy and Bob Blaisdell and everyone at the Demers Group for their incredible advocacy work. The bill would not have made it this far without Matt and Bob's dedication.

We'd also like to thank all of the courageous New Hampshire patients who have spoken out publicly in support of this bill - Sandy Drew, Clayton Holton, Dennis Acton, Ellen McClung, Barbara Filleul, and Scott Turner, who passed away in August. Thank you also to everyone else who testified at the legislative hearings and met with Gov. Lynch's staffers.

The sponsors and champions of this bill deserve a lot of credit as well. Without their tireless work, the bill would not have made it this far. Thank you to Reps. Evalyn Merrick, Roger Wells, Cindy Rosenwald, Trinka Russell, Tom Donovan, and James Pilliod, and Sens. Martha Fuller Clark and John Gallus. 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. MPP and New Hampshire's suffering patients still need your support. So, please call your legislators and ask your friends and family to do the same by passing this alert along to them.