Medical marijuana has been legal in Maine for about a decade, but patients will now be able to obtain the drug legally through a system of dispensaries, approved in yesterday's election by Maine voters. The law also expands the list of conditions for which marijuana can be prescribed.
Implementing the new law will now be up the the state's Department of Health and Human Services. Votes are still being tallied, but unofficially, the measure passed by a vote of about 60 to 40.
Voters also turned back an attempt to scuttle the state's school consolidation law by a vote of about 60 to 40. More than 100 districts have still not consolidated, but several have. Supporters of the repeal had said the law was not working as intended, but opponents said it would be costly to return to the previous system.