The Associated Press is projecting that Maine voters have approved a measure to expand the state's medical marijuana law. With about half of precincts reporting, the measure is leading by a vote ot 60 to 40.

The expansion will allow medical marijuana patients to buy the drug at licensed dispensaries, and allows the drug to be prescribed for more medical conditions.

The measure was opposed by law enforcement authorities and state health officials. Supporters of the measure say Maine is now the fifth state to allow marijuana dispensaries.  Jonathan Leavitt of Maine Citizens for Patients Rights, the organization behind the initiative, released the following statement: 

"Thanks to the compassion and courage of Maine voters, people suffering from devastating diseases will now have safe access to a plant that can help relieve their pain and nausea and muscle spasms,  medicine that comes not from pharmaceutical companies but from Maine farmers. This is a tremendous victory for patients' rights and for everyone who believes in the creation of a more compassionate health care system and a more just marijuana policy."